Fate No Heart
by Kanimize
Summary: When Xehanort in his prime learns of a world that holds an artifact that is said to be capable of granting any wishes, his curiosity led him to a world where magic users are a hidden society that hold an annual once-in-a-lifetime competition called The Holy Grail War.
1. The Kickstart

Fate/No Heart

Disclaimer: I do not own both Kingdom Hearts and Fate/Zero or any of their respective works.

Summary

When Xehanort learns of a world that holds an artifact that is said to be able to grant any wish, his curiosity led him to a world where magic users are a hidden society that hold an annual once-in-a-lifetime competition called The Holy Grail War.

* * *

**The Prelude**

* * *

The Land of Departure- a special world located between the Realm of Darkness and the Realm of Light. The world held a slightly golden castle set high in the mountains with a large circular area in the middle of it which leads to the entrance of the castle. And in the area, a dark portal opened up. Within the portal, a figure dressed in a black coat stepped forward from the annals of darkness.

The figure took off his hood, revealing his identity to be Xehanort.

Xehanort, a adult male that appears to be around his late thirties who has silver hair, tanned skin, and golden eyes was walking down to the entrance of The Castle.

The Keyblade Master was in deep thought as he walked to the Castle door. He hadn't seen Eraqus since they graduated from being mere Keyblade wielders to Keyblade Masters and, despite not liking Eraqus's clear bias for the light and blatant hatred of the darkness, saw him as a brother. Thus, he had decided to pay Eraqus a surprise visit to the Land of Departure.

He also wanted to peruse the castle's library to do more research on Kingdom Hearts. But that could come second- for now.

Arriving at the locked castle door, he knocked.

Once. No Answer.

Twice. Nothing.

Three times. No response.

'Perhaps he's offworld at the moment," he thought.

He knocked once again to confirm that Eraqus was indeed not home.

After waiting five minutes with no response from inside the castle, Xehanort sighed.

'He's definitely off-world.'

He remembered Eraqus saying that he would be welcomed back to the castle at anytime and, that on the off-chance he was not there to welcome him due to his duties as a Keyblade Master, to just enter as it is his home as well.

Xehanort smiled. That's what he has always liked about Eraqus. So quick to welcome others with open arms.

He extended his right arm out in front of him and willed his keyblade to come to his hand. In a brief moment, it appeared in his hand in a mist of darkness. The keyblade had a dark appearance. It had a spiky, black guard resembling demonic wings. A horned, demonic head just above the handle, two barbed shafts, and teeth resembling a battle axe split into three almost claw-like protrusions.

Xehanort pointed his keyblade at the door's lock. Soon, a thin beam of light shot out from the keyblade and went straight into the lock. He heard the door unlocked and began walking as he saw the castle's door opened.

* * *

The Master Library, a massive collection of knowledge collected from and on different worlds. This oasis of knowledge, where Xehanort had spent time in since his days as an apprentice, holds information transcribed and collected from each generations of Keyblade Masters since the end of the Keyblade War. Yet even in this fountain of knowledge and learning, there are some subjects that cannot be so easily found.

In the castle's master library, Xehanort had taken out a couple dozen or so books and laid them out on a table. A fair number of these books relate the creation of the Keyblade, some on the Keyblade War, a few on Kingdom Hearts, and fewer on how one might able to use it.

As Xehanort spent hours peering through each passages of each page of every book he could on find on these subjects, he found that not even one of these books could tell him how to obtain Kingdom Hearts.

Exasperated, exhausted, and slightly enraged due to not finding any information he had wanted to find, he curled his hands into fists and slammed the table in front of him.

"Damn it!" he shouted, his face contorted into a mix between a frown and a snarl.

He didn't spent years wandering the many worlds searching for information on Kingdom Hearts for nothing.

Every time he discovered new information on Kingdom Hearts, he had felt he was getting closer to solving the mysteries surrounding it. Yet, as time went on, as he found and memorized new information pertaining to Kingdom Hearts, he had felt as though he hadn't been making any true progress. He was so close, yet so far!

Xehanort took a breath and calmed himself down. It wouldn't do for him to lose his cool like that. Still, he wished that he could find the information on how to obtain Kingdom Hearts.

"..."

A spark of inspiration hit him.

"Eureka!" he exclaimed.

If he couldn't find the necessary information obtain Kingdom Hearts, then he would just simply find an all powerful wish granting artifact that would obtain Kingdom Hearts for him. If on the off-chance that it could not grant his wish, then he would simply wish for information on how to obtain Kingdom Hearts himself.

Invigorated by this realization and with curiosity in his heart, he dove back into the library looking for books with information on powerful wish granting artifacts.

* * *

_Some time later_

A book was flung from across the library as Xehanort had discovered that it, too, did not have the answers that he sought. 'Darn it,' he thought. His eyes were filled with disappointment once again.

Xehanort walked to a rather bookcase holding multiple books. He looked up and said, "Perhaps it was too much of a stretch to hope for an all powerful wishing artifact that would do the work for me," he muttered.

He curled his right hand up into a fist and, hoping to rid himself of his mild irritation and disappointment, punched the bookcase.

What happened next was a minor event which will soon lead to a major event.

The punch shook the entire bookcase which led it to suddenly move. When it suddenly moved, one of the books at the very top of the bookcase fell and plunged right down onto Xehanort's face.

*thud*

"..."

Xehanort slowly removed the book from his face. As he did, he caught a look of the title of the book.

"The Holy Grail Wars." he read.

'What is this book?' he wondered. Filled with intrigue and curiosity in his heart, he quickly opened the book and, as a result, soon learned of a world where people fought, bled, and even died. All for the chance to have their single greatest wish granted.

* * *

** FATE/NO HEART**

* * *

**Hi, this is Kanimize. If you like or dislike the story enough already, please leave a review telling me why. If you have any questions at all, please leave one in your reviews. If there's anything I can improve on or fix, put it in the review.  
**

**I hope you readers are enjoying this story. If not, well...I'll be updating this regardless.**

**See ya.**


	2. The Summoning

Fate/No Heart

Disclaimer- I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Fate/Zero, or any of their respective works. If I did, it wouldn't be called Kingdom Hearts or Fate/(something).

Summary

Arriving at the city of Fuyuki, where the Holy Grail War is about to take place, Xehanort summons a Servant.

**Obsidian and Gashadokuro- The HGW in this fic is the one that appears in Fate/Zero. The Servant that I'm pairing with Xehanort is one that did not appear in any of Nasu's work but was mentioned. I'm not going to say who it is that is going to be paired up with him, but know that it is a Caster type that has a connection to two of the Servants in F/Z.**

Chapter 1-A New World

* * *

Fuyuki, a city divided into two section by the local river, is where the conflict takes place. In the dead of night where no one except those participating in the contest for the Holy Grail was awake, a man in a black coat arrived.

* * *

**FATE NO HEART**

* * *

The book that detailed the events of the Holy Grail Wars that had fallen on him was, evidently, the first of three volumes. Each one recounted the details of each war, with volume one holding the details of the first war-and so on.

It had taken him several readings of each volume to get the gist of what happened.

In the beginning, this Holy Grail War, which takes place once every sixty years, was not supposed to have been a war at all.

The first war was initially a ritual that was only possible through the cooperation of three family of mages. They were the Tohsaka's, the Makiri, and the Einzbern. The ritual was meant to allow the three clans by sacrificing each of the seven servants-Saber, Lancer, Archer, Rider, Berserker, Caster, and Assassin- and realized each of their greatest wish before quickly degenerating into a bloody free-for-all massacre upon the discovery that the Grail could only grant one single wish. Despite the fact that there should've been a clear winner, in the end, no wish was granted.

The second war was not that different from the first one as well.

Formally taking on the name of the "Holy Grail War," it had developed into a war for the second time and, like the war before it, had quickly escalated. The lack of any proper rules and restraints had turned the contest once again into blood bath with, once again, no clear winner.

The third war, he noted, was a bit more interesting.

Thanks to their unique sorcery trait, the Eldelfelts were able to have two representatives from their clan and summon not one, but two saber class servants.

The Einzberns, tired of their failure to win, summoned a new servant-one that would replace Berserker for the war. Hoping to finally win the third Holy Grail War, they have made modifications to the summoning system, enabling them to summon Avenger. However, it turned out that Avenger was weak and was thus killed promptly.

In the ensuing war, the lesser grail, a cup that had served as a vessel for the actual grail, was destroyed. As a result of this, the ritual to bring forth the Grail failed.

That is where that story ends.

And a new one begins.

* * *

Getting to this world was not a terribly arduous task. The world had been simple to locate using the resources within the library. The only problem was that the world was simply too far for him to reach it in time for the Holy Grail War. Thankfully, the Corridors of Darkness provided him a way to easily reach the far off world. In fact, with the Corridors of Darkness, getting to this world was incredibly easy. The dark portals are truly a significantly faster travel method. Much faster than using his keyblade's glider form to travel.

Xehanort took off his glove and looked at his hand, seeing a red X that have been split up into three parts branded on the back of his hand. After arriving in this world, the mark of a Master, the command seals, had suddenly appeared. As it had suddenly appeared the moment he set foot on this world, he could only assume that the reason for its appearance was due to the Holy Grail.

'Yes, the Holy Grail. To have chosen me as a Master so quickly, it surely must have sense my power. Perhaps the stories about the Holy Grail's omnipotence may be true after all.'

He put his black gloves back on.

'But I digress.'

Using the free map of the town Xehanort obtained from a nearby stand, he made his way towards the market district of Fuyuki City and took a note from out from one of his many pockets. It was a list of supplies and ingredients needed to create a summoning circle.

Approaching a store, Xehanort came to realize a very important question.

"I wonder...does this world accept munny?"

* * *

_"Thanks to an anonymous tip, local authorities have found and identified the serial killer. The serial killer, named Uryuu Ryuunosuke, who had murdered a number of both children and women was found inside a local home. When cornered by the police, the serial killer took a young boy hostage and threatened to kill him immediately. This prompted negotiations with the serial killer until a careless slip caused Ryuunosuke to slit the boy's throat. The man was promptly gunned down. A witness at the scene reported that the Demon Uryuu Ryyuunosuke died with a smile on his face."  
_

Tokiomi Tohsaka put down the newspaper.

How glad he was to discover that the serial murderer that had been plaguing this city had finally been located and put down. Of course, the loss of innocent child was horrible and tragic, but what mattered was that he could now be certain that both his wife and children were completely safe from the threat of death. Though it would've been unlikely, the very fact that the Demon, Ryuunosuke, mainly targeted women and children made the very possibility of it happening frightening to him.

He had put some thought about what would he do if the situation ever occurred to him. After some deep thoughts and self-reflection, he had found that, despite the ridiculously small chance that the situation would ever happened to him, if that were to ever happened to his wife, Aoi, and his children, both Rin and Sakura, he would've sank deep into sadness before going after the man in a fit of homicidal rage.

Luckily for him, he can rest relatively easy now.

Tokiomi took a swig of wine from his glass.

Night time was quickly approaching, yet there was still no signs of the seventh master. The plan to fool the other masters into thinking that Assassin was eliminated could not commence until the seventh servant was summoned.

He sighed. He would just have to wait for Risei to inform both him and Kirei when the seventh master manifests the final servant.

* * *

No. It appears as though this world does not accept munny for currency. Which was a shame, really, since he was loaded with munny from his earlier days of traveling the many worlds. It would appear that not only this world does not accept munny for currency, this world happens to have many different sorts of currency with each one that could only be used within a specific area of the world. He had found out the hard way when attempting to purchase five urns that the currency this particular part of the world uses to exchange goods and services is called 'yen'.

But alas, he did not have any. If only this world had a moogle stationed nearby, the little creatures had so much business sense, he could probably exchange his munny for this 'yen'.

Shame, there weren't any moogles around to do that for him. If only there were, he would not have had to knock a man out for his wallet. Oh, the indignity. Forced to resort to thievery to legally purchase goods with illegally gotten money.

He had to lure a man, a rather wealthy looking individual with blond hair and a pale complexion, into a nearby alley in the market district. It's a wonder what a little compulsion spell can do to a person. After that, all he had to do was use a sleep spell on him and the man soon fell into a deep slumber. Afterwards, with the vast amount of yen that he had obtained from mugging a man, he purchased supplies from various stores that he needed to use for the summoning ritual.

Except for the blood, he already had prepared those in a bunch of vials with his own blood beforehand. It would've been very suspicious and odd to the denizens of this world if he had went around asking where he could purchase blood of all things.

After gathering all the materials and placing them in his pocket (which thanks to his magic, it can hold anything so long as he does not exceed the limit of ninety nine for each item), Xehanort made his way to the forest area to perform the summoning.

Using one of the books he had found from the Master's Library from the Land of Departure to help guide him through the process, Xehanort drew the summoning circle with blood.

"Let's see..." he muttered to himself. "Fill each of the five urns...and when each is filled, destroy it."

He poured a vial of blood into an urn and destroyed it. He repeated this for the next four.

Usually in a normal summoning ritual, either a chant, relic, or anything similar would be used to specified what one wanted to summon. For example, if he had wanted to summon a giant anthropomorphic chicken, he would use a one of the feathers it had shed in life as a charm to summon it.

However, as the Grail itself is what is doing the actual summoning, a relic was not necessary for the process. It could change the results of the summoning, true. But it was not necessary. In fact, he felt that doing this would be preferable to using an actual relic to summon. Though he could choose to summon a powerful servant by using a relic, doing so would be pointless if the servant was not compatible thus becoming insubordinate and unwilling to follow his orders.

That, and he seriously doubt that any of his own relics that he has collected over the years from many worlds would work here.

Bu he still needed to chant.

He stretched his arm outwards in front of him and open his hand.

**"Darkness, heed my call..."**

The summoning circle began to glow with a bright blue color.

**"In the pursuit of power and knowledge..."**

A wave of power began to emanate from the summoning circle.

**"Give me a Servant..."**

The summoning circle's glow began to increase in intensity and the power emanating from the circle began to grow in force.

**"One that will lead me to the Holy Grail..."**

The surrounding area became lit up in a bright light.

**"So I may call upon what my heart desires most..."  
**

* * *

**"Kingdom Hearts."**

* * *

The area became engulfed in a bright light. So bright, Xehanort had to close his eyes. The trees began to shake, and the ground itself started to rumble.

Yet as quickly as it came, it began to stop. The intensity of the light began to decrease. The rumbling began to cease. The wave of power emanating from the summoning circle began to fade.

When it all came to an end, he opened his eyes.

And he saw was his servant. His servant was a pale woman that could be seen as beautiful. She has black hair and a dark purple dress that reminded Xehanort of a stereotypical mage outfit.

"I am Servant Caster," his servant began as she smiled darkly.

"I ask of you, are you my Master?"

* * *

**Hi, this is Kanimize again. After weeks of procrastination (I like to thank both KH 1.5, 2.5, and Tekken for that), chapter two is out. Like last time, if you like or dislike this, leave a review explaining why. If you have a burning question that you want answer, leave a review, pm, or any other method. Thanks for reading.  
**


	3. The Plot

Fate/No Heart

**Yeah, I'm not going to put any plot related stuff up here now. Or anywhere. I need to keep my mouth shut about the plot. Don't wanna spoil for any of you with just one or two sentences. Eeeeenjoy.**

Chapter 2: The Changing Wind of Fate

* * *

**DAWN**

Xehanort always enjoyed taking a stroll out a night. It wasn't the stroll that made the night enjoyable. In fact, the pleasure had come from simply prowling around with the darkness by the side. But right now, he had no time to go out and walk side by side with the darkness. One of his creations using the power of darkness, a black blob of darkness which acted as a sort of camera, that he had sent out on his first day to locate and spy on any nearby masters had just informed him that a battle had taken place at the Tohsaka Manor.

The fighting, which had taken place just a little after he had summoned Caster, was, in simple layman terms, a slaughter.

As he stood on the top of a tallest building overlooking the city at the crack of dawn, he replayed the mental footage in his head.

He could see why Assassin was a servant to be feared.

The Servant, dressed in a extremely skintight black outfit from head to toe with a skull mask on his face, dropped from the sky and into the Manor Garden whilst simultaneously breaking a few of the gems that had made up some of the manor's defenses by flicking pebbles at it and landed in a bush.

He then moved to the center of the garden where a gem placed within a intricate circular structure and made quick and elegant movements as though he was avoiding a couple of moving invisible traps. And then the masked servant flicked what appeared to be more pebbles, disabling the the entire bounded field.

Truly, the Servant was a master of stealth. Yet as impressive as seeing Assassin in action was, nothing had prepared him for what had happened next.

Assassin made his way to where the gem that had formerly made up the entirety of the bounded field that guarded the area and was about to remove it.

That was when the second Servant struck. A sharp weapon had then appeared quickly out of nowhere and imbedded itself in the black Assassin, immobilizing the Servant via pinning him to the structure where the gem, now shattered by the sudden appearance of the weapon, once was.

A voice which he could only be described as snobby and egotistic rang out.

"You are nothing but a worm!"

The image flickered and adjusted itself as it turned to face the Servant that had insulted Assassin. As the mental image became more focused on the Servant, he made note on the second Servant's appearance. The Servant had tanned skin, blond hair that went upwards, eyes as red as blood, and clad in, in his opinion, a gaudy golden armor.

The black clad Servant had looked up in what Xehanort assumed to be surprise.

"Who gave you permission to to look up at me?!" the Servant in gold shouted.

And then suddenly a storm of swords, spears, and other assorted weaponry materialized from a golden light behind the gold clad Servant. The storm of blades propelled themselves at Assassin. Explosions upon explosions were caused when the projectiles missed, littering the garden with craters as many of the weapons failed to hit their target because the golden Servant had merely aimed at Assassin's general direction rather than accurately aiming at the black Servant himself.

But since Assassin was rendered immobile thanks to the spear pinning him down, very quickly a sword met Assassin's head and ended the Servant's time in the plane of the living.

That was all he could see before the image faded.

'So that was a battle between Servants' Xehanort thought to himself. He replayed the information in his head again and this time focused his attention to the Gold Servant.

"That Servant that rained down those weapons," Xehanort pondered. "He must be Archer."

"And how did you arrived to that conclusion?" A sultry voice said from behind him.

He turned around and his purple clad servant Caster appeared.

"I needn't have to explain," he said. "After all, you saw what I saw. It should be quite obvious."

That servant, Archer, had materialized swords upon swords from a golden gate behind him and utilized them as projectiles. Explosive projectiles. It must be his Noble Phantasm.

"Caster," he began. "Do you know of any Heroic Spirits that can materialize weaponry and use them as projectiles?"

"No," she shook her head. "I am afraid that I do not know of any Heroic Spirits that utilizes weaponry in such a...interesting manner."

Xehanort turned to face the city.

"Hmm..." Xehanort placed his hand to his chin as if contemplating. "No matter. We do not need the name of the Servant or his Noble Phantasm. Regardless of it's strengths, if that is the extent of his abilities, then we merely need to plan around it."

True, that ability of Archer may be fearsome. But every move has a counter to it. And in his case, he may have several ways to counter it. If in the event that any of his counters failed to work, he could simply try getting up front and personal with the Gold Servant.

"To claim to not need the name of neither both Archer or his Noble Phantasm, how very confident you are," Caster said.

He rolled his eyes at her remark. It was not as though he was overly confident. Granted, he does feel very confident in his abilities, but there was one simple fact evident to him. Even if they were to somehow obtain the identity of Archer, as someone who is not of this world and thus currently ignorant of what it contains beside the Holy Grail, it would have no use to him.

"Do you have a plan?"

"Yes," he said. "Several, in fact. One of which involves your participation."

Caster raised her eyebrows.

"Oh, really? Only one? Enlighten me."

Xehanort smirked confidently.

"It is simple. For what I need is merely your powers as an enchantress."

"How?" she asked.

"Use your powers to make both of us appear what we are not."

There was confusion on her face.

"Elaborate," she said.

"To simply put it," he began while turning around to face Caster. "We shall pull what is most commonly known as the switcheroo."

He told Caster his plan.

He could see Caster's eyes widened.

"What," Caster said with a tone and inflection that indicated both skepticism and disbelief. "You mean to tell me that you WANT to fight the Heroic Spirits?"

"Yes."

Her eyes deadpanned.

"Are you mad? Or are you suicidal?"

Xehanort shook his head at Caster and wagged his finger at her.

"Neither," he said.

Her eyes narrowed.

"You are quite bold, I'll give you that," she started. "You may be a powerful magus, dark one, but I doubt you can hold your own against even the weakest Servants."

Xehanort raised his eyebrows at that.

"Oh? And what makes you so sure of that, Caster?" he asked.

"No matter how strong you are, Master, you are but a mere human," she stated as a matter of fact. "Flesh that can be easily rendered from your bones and bones that can be easily broken. As their physical bodies are composed and maintained through prana, the Servants of the Holy Grail do not have such weakness."

Caster stared at Xehanort.

"In short, if you continue with that line of thought, you will not only lose the opportunity to win the Grail," she made a short pause.

"You will lose your life."

Xehanort merely looked on with dull eyes and what he felt could only be described as annoyance.

"Is that it?" he asked.

"What-"

He interrupted Caster.

"I'll make this very clear, Caster." His body began to flare with the power of the darkness and a black aura surrounded his body. Caster, noticing this, took a few steps back.

"I am no mere human."

Through their link with each other, he forced Caster to bear witness to his memories of his abilities. To be more specific, the ones that would not blatantly reveal his true nature as a Keyblade wielder or the existence of other worlds.

He saw that Caster went on her knees clutching her head with her hands. She was probably in pain.

Good.

She would not dare question his ability after this.

After a few minutes, Caster slowly removed her hands from her head. She looked up at Xehanort and asked him a question.

"What was that?"

"My memories," he answered. "More specifically, the memories of what I can do."

"Then, if you are as strong as indicated by these memories, why not use your prowess against the Masters? They are much weaker than the Servants."

Xehanort stared at Caster.

"The answer should be obvious, Caster."

He turned his back on Caster and his dark aura died down. He looked down at the streets of the city, now slowly becoming more active as the sun rises.

"With my powers, winning the Grail will be as easy as-" he snapped his fingers. "That. That is, if I were to directly attack the other Masters. But what fun would that be?"

He turned to face Caster.

"I want the Grail. That is true. And I want it to grant my wish above all else." He made some dramatic hand gestures. "But I also want to have some test myself."

"Test yourself?!" Caster practically shouted.

Xehanort smiled.

"Winning this war is goal. To slay all the Servants is the test that I've set. The prize? The Grail."

He will win the Grail and call upon Kingdom Hearts. That is something that cannot possibly be changed.

* * *

**DAY**

At the airport, a pale ruby-eyed lady with long pale white hair dressed in all white stepped out of an airplane.

"Oh my, so this is where Kiritsugu was born?"

Irisviel felt so happy. She finally arrived in Kiritsugu's home country.

She turns to Saber, her blond green-eyed Servant dressed in a black suit.

"Well, Saber? How did you enjoy your journey through the sky?"

Saber responded.

"It was really nothing to speak of. It was far simpler than I had actually anticipated."

"I suppose flying must be nothing special to a real hero, am I right?

Saber shook her head.

"No, that's not it. Upon materialization, Servants receive knowledge of the modern world. If required, I could even pilot this aircraft with relative ease."

Irisviel was surprised.

"You could?" she asked. "Are you serious?"

Saber nodded.

"My riding skill allows me to command any beast or vehicle with only the exception of Phantasmal Beasts or Divine Beasts."

Saber continued.

"Once I take the saddle between my legs and take the reins, intuition does the rest."

Irisviel quickly realized what Saber had just said.

"...Take the saddle between the legs..."

She could hardly contain her giggle.

"Hehe!"

"Huh?" Saber seemed to be surprised at her reaction. "Did I say something funny?"

* * *

Out in the bright sunny day in Fuyuki, there was two people currently wandering aimlessly looking for anyone who might be a Master or a Servant. One was a man in a black coat and the other was a pale woman in a very purple dress. They were both currently invisible thanks to Caster's spirit form and Xehanort's vanish spell. They had decided to go invisible. Caster, for obvious reasons. Xehanort, however, opted to become invisible as his black coat had simply stood out too much during the day.

Caster was walking alongside her master, thinking about the Holy Grail War thus far.

When she was summoned, she didn't expect to be summoned by such a powerful Magus. One that is sunk deep in the dark arts. She could feel it from their connection. The vast overwhelming amount of prana that he was providing her with a strong taint of darkness. What a curious one, to willingly pursue the dark arts.

And his plan, oh how out of the ordinary it was. Normally, the masters would trot away and fight each other and leave the servants to fight one other. But what he had proposed was one unlike any other. It was incomprehensible at first. It was strange. It was mad. It was, for all intent and purpose, suicidal to consider. Yet when she bore witness to his feats, she reconsidered.

One does not ignore a being that can match a Servant in power.

Caster turned her thoughts to the bizarre plan her master enacted.

Her master's plan was quite out of the ordinary. Whereas a master would fight a master and a servant would fight a servant, her master in black would instead face off against each of the servants while under the effects of her powerful illusion magic which would give him the impression of a servant. At the same time, she would undergo a transformation herself and disguise herself as a master for this war. That way, should they be able to fool everyone, some of the masters if not all would target her, unaware of her true nature as a Servant.

She had to admit. The idea has merit to it. Should they be able to pull it off, they would be able to get rid of any masters foolish enough to attack a disguised Servant.

But it was still a idiotic plan.

!

Caster blinked. She had just felt the presence of a Servant. It felt strangely familiar to her. She spoke to the one who had summoned her, the man clad in a black coat, through their connection.

"Did you feel that?" she asked.

"A Servant?" he responded.

"Yes," Caster confirmed. "Faint as it may be, there is no mistaking it. Whoever it may be, the servant is currently in physical form."

His response was swift. "Can you track the Servant?"

She nodded, though she doubt he could see it.

"Yes."

"Well," her master said. "I believe the next course of action is obvious."

Though Caster could not see her master while he is invisible, she could imagine a malicious smile would be adorn on his face, a sentiment would indeed she share.

"Let us follow."

* * *

**NIGHT**

Previously Saber had been with Irisviel at the coastline where her Master's mistress was playing in the sea water. However, a Servant, she didn't know which one, had revealed his or her's location as a challenge. This prompted Saber, with the permission of Irisviel, to respond to the call.

As they began to get closer to the source, the landscape around them began to change. When they started, they were at the beach. Now, after following the signal leading to the Servant that is announcing his or her's presence, they have ended up at the port area evident by the numerous containers.

"Welcome," a suave voice rang out. "I have spent the entire day searching the city for a worthy foe. But everyone just slinks away, hiding in their little holes."

A black haired man clad in black armor appeared with a smile on his face. In his both his hand are two spears. In his right hand, a long red spear. In his left, a short spear wrapped in cloth.

"You alone have accepted my offer."

Saber stepped in front of Irisviel protectively.

The man in black armor continued.

"That pure energy surrounding you...you are the servant called Saber, I presume?"

Saber looked at him with fire in her eyes.

"Indeed I am. And I presume you are the one that is known as Lancer."

Lancer made a grunting noise but otherwise made no attempt to hide his identity.

"Being unable to honorable name myself to my opponent in combat troubles me than I can describe," he said with a disappointed look on his face.

"I harbor enormous dislike of these rules."

Lancer spun both his spears in his hand once and then positioned himself for battle. Meanwhile, a blue aura began to surround Saber. Soon a bright blue light appeared and suddenly the black suit that Saber was wearing disappeared and a predominately blue and white armor took its place.

Saber raised her weapon, which was rendered practically invisible through the use of invisible air, with both hands.

Irisviel spoke from behind Saber.

"Saber, please...be careful," she said with concern in her voice.

"I can use my healing magic to act as combat support for you. But more than that-"

She was cut off by Saber.

"Just leave Lancer to me," she said. "But it troubles me that Lancer's Master has not shown himself. Perhaps they plot something."

Saber focused on Lancer.

"Irisviel. From this point on, I entrust you to watch my back."

Irisviel nodded.

"Very well, Saber. I will. Grant me victory in this fight!"

Saber acknowledged her words.

"I will. Without fail."

She and Lancer locked eyes with each other. Lancer appeared to stare even harder as if appraising her. After of while of nothing interesting happening, Saber, noticing his mole and realizing that something was up, spoke.

"You have a charm spell," she said.

Lancer sighed and broke his stance.

"My apologies. It's a curse that I was born with," he explained. "There's really nothing that I can do about it. Blame it on my birth or blame it on the fact that you were born a woman."

Saber scoffed and maintain her posture.

"Surely you don't believe that a pleasant face and a charming swagger will save you from the bite of my blade, Lancer.

"I certainly hope not," Lancer responded. "It would spoil the fun."

Lancer continued with a smile present on his face.

"I see now that the tales of the Saber Class magic resistance to magic were true."

His grin widened.

"Very well, I prefer not to kill a girl who was throwing herself at me, anyway. It would sully my reputation. I'm quite pleased that my first opponent is made of stern stuff."

Saber grinned in response to his words.

"Oh? So what you desire is a fair fight?" she questioned. "I consider myself fortunate to encounter such a strong and proud hero."

Lancer returned her sentiment.

"Then let us begin," he said.

A brief pause.

Saber began moving at Lancer, raising her sword while charging at Lancer. Lancer spun his spears elegantly before stopping to thrust his spear at Saber's face. Saber deflected Lancer's spear with a swipe and quickly attempted to cut Lancer down with her sword. Lancer dodged one, two, and three swipes from Saber before raising both his spears to block the next swing. The sword met both spears and, for a split second, both Saber and Lancer stared each other in the eyes.

From both nearby and from afar, multiple Masters and Servants began observing the battle.

* * *

Xehanort, standing high up on top of a container which allowed him full view of the battlefield while still under the effects of Vanish, studied the opposition.

To his left, a woman in white commanded Saber. To his right, a man in black who was likely commanding Lancer.

In front, he can see the two Servants fighting. He could tell from the servants equipment that the black haired man cover in light weight black armor holding two spears is Lancer while the blond woman wearing the heavy blue and white armor holding the invisible sword is Saber.

Lancer wields two spears in battle and he handles it well. He could easily see that Lancer must've been a master spear handler when he was alive from the way that he moved and the way he deflected Saber's strikes with relative ease.

Saber, too, deserves praise as well. Being able to wield a two handed weapon in a high speed battle such as this is quite impressive.

Speaking of Saber, his servant, Caster, seem to be starting intently at Saber and muttering to herself. He could barely make sense of what she was saying due to him watching the battle, but one thing did catch his ears.

A name. Arturia. Perhaps it is the name of the servant Saber? If so, then maybe he might ask Caster what her relation to Saber is. Depending on the outcome on this battle, the information may prove crucial.

He paid attention to the woman on his left. The woman with unnaturally light silver hair in bright white clothing that contrasted her dark surroundings. He saw that she has red eyes. An Einzbern Master, perhaps? The books have made mention that the Einzberns used homunculus, identifiable from their pale skin, silver hair, and red eyes, to compete in their place. Regardless, it would appear that she is in command of Saber, the strongest of all the classes.

And to his right, he spied a blonde man in black clothing standing atop of the warehouse. From his position, he must be Lancer's master. He appeared to focusing heavily on the battle at hand as well.

Refocusing on the battle, he found that Saber is now on the defensive. Lancer was pressing the assault swinging the spear in his right hand. Saber blocked the strike and immediately followed up with forward swing that Lancer narrowly avoided. They briefly paused.

He saw some blood dripping down from Lancer's face. Clearly that last hit must've hit him.

The battle continued on. Both Saber and Lancer were going at it. Lancer kept alternating between his two spears making it hard for blonde servant to ascertain which spear he will use. Saber's practically invisible weapon made it hard for Lancer to attack since he couldn't judge its length. As such, it made parrying and dodging her strikes much harder and a mistake could easily lead to him being cleaved in two.

He continued watching until he felt a new presence appear directly in front of him. He looked across the battlefield and his eyes widened in relative surprise as he saw someone that should be dead. A dark man dressed in a black cloak wearing a white skull mask sitting upon the crane.

"Assassin?"

* * *

**Fate/No Heart**

* * *

**I'm ending it here. **

**Hi, this is Kanimize. As always, if you like or dislike something, leave a review detailing what it was. If there's any advice that you have that could help me improve this story, put it in your review as well. I'll make sure to read it. If you made it this far and want more, or at least wouldn't mind seeing more of this story, please follow or favorite this story. Also, I now have a schedule for this story. Expect to see two chapters per month.**

**Hope you're enjoying this so far.**


	4. The Cold Wind of Fate is Changing

Fate/No Heart

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Fate/Zero, or any of their respective works.

**Today is the day where the presence of Fate/Zero's established canon begins to walks off the plank.**

Chapter 3: Dark Impetus

* * *

**NIGHT**

"There is activity at the warehouse district at the mouth of the Mion River."

Within the barely lit basement of the Church, a designated safe zone for any Masters to take refuge in should they lose either their Servant or three Command Seals, a man dressed in a black priest outfit with brown hair that covered his forehead complete with a necklace that resembles a cross reported to Tokiomi Tohsaka.

His name was Kirei Kotomine. Currently, he is informing Tokiomi of the events that are taking place at the warehouse.

"The first battle has finally begun."

Tokiomi's voice rang out.

"Not the first." he said. "To the others, this would be the second battle."

Kirei continued with his report. "It would appear the combatants are Saber and Lancer."

"Can you ascertain their status with Assassin's eyes?" he asked.

"With ease." Kirei, using Assassin as his eyes to view the battle, looked at Saber and gathered information about her parameters. "Saber's formidable abilities are especially high. Most of her parameters are ranked A or higher."

A brief pause.

"I see. It's no wonder that they are considered the strongest class. Saber likely presents a greater threat than Lancer. Can you see either of the two masters?"

Kirei responded. "There is only one person besides the Servants who is out in the open. Standing next to Saber is a woman with silver hair."

"Then Lancer's master is wise enough to remain hidden from view and that it means he is not a novice. He understand the rules of the Holy Grail War." Tokiomi quickly paused. "Wait," he said. "A silver haired woman?"

"Yes. She's Caucasian with red eyes. How very unusual. She doesn't look at all human."

"An Einzbern homunculus," Tokiomi confirmed. "Did the Einzbern create another artificial Master? I had thought the only pawn Jubstacheit had on board was Kiritsugu Emiya. It would appear that I was wrong."

"So then," Kirei quietly interjected. "That woman is the Einzbern Master?"

"Either way, she's certainly going to be a critical factor in the rest of the Grail War. Kirei, keep a close eye on her."

Kirei nodded. "Agreed. I shall keep one Assassin tasked to keep an eye on her at all times."

* * *

Xehanort, mildly surprised at Assassin's presence on the edge of the battlefield, raised his eyebrows. He almost did not notice Assassin. While watching the battle between Saber and Lancer, he had felt a small shift in the distance. It was so small as to be inconsequential, but as a Master, both as a Mage and a Keyblade Wielder, he learned to trust his guts at times like these. Hah, To almost escape his notice, that was a feat worth noting.

Still, he thought that Assassin perished in the battle between him and Archer. He looked closer at Assassin from afar.

"Ah." he said to himself in a quiet voice. It was not the same Assassin from the battle that had taken place at the Tohsaka Manor. This Assassin is not the same Assassin that perished at the Tohsaka Manor. Whereas the Assassin that had died at the hands of Archer had no visible hair to speak of, this one has hair that resembles a bowl cut with two long strands of hair on opposite sides of his head. Another difference he had found was that this Assassin wore a black cloak that covered his entire body while the first Assassin went around essentially half naked.

Regardless, Assassin appears to be simply spying on the other Masters. He is likely to be reporting to his Master right now through their connection to each other. For now, he'll leave Assassin alone. But he will be making plans to dispose of him later. After all, an unknown element is bound to cause problems in the future,

When he returned his attention to the battlefield, he found both Lancer and Saber to be standing still talking to one another. He could not exactly make out what they are saying, though he suspects that they may be exchanging pleasantries.

Suddenly a voice rang out loudly, as if amplified.

"That's enough fun for now, Lancer." It must be Lancer's Master. "Do not allow this battle to go on. Saber is a formidable opponent. Eliminate her at once. You may use your Noble Phantasm."

Oh? Lancer's Noble Phantasm? Now this, he has got to see.

* * *

"There is really no honor in a battle fought without a proper exchange of names," Lancer said. "But allow me to offer my regards. It's impressive for a woman for a woman to fight so without even breaking a sweat as she does it."

"You needn't be so humble, Lancer. Even without my knowing of your name, those words coming from a master of the spear such as yourself do me great honor. I gratefully accept them. "

A loud voice suddenly came out from nowhere. "That's enough fun for now, Lancer."

Irisviel spoke from behind her. "Lancer's Master?!"

The voice continued. "Do not allow this battle to go on. Saber is a formidable opponent. Eliminate her at once. You may use your Noble Phantasm."

Saber prepared herself. 'This is not good. He is going to use his Noble Phantasm. But which spear is his Noble Phantasm? The long one? The short one?' Right now, she could only wait and see.

Lancer smiled. "At your command, I will obey." Lancer dropped his short spear and gripped his long spear with two hands.

So...the long spear is his Noble Phantasm.

The cloth wrapped around the long spear unwrapped itself, revealing a spear colored completely red from the shaft to the blade. Lancer twirled the blade behind him with his right arm while position his left arm in front of him. He spoke. "Saber...the time has come for me to kill you."

'Here it co-!'

"Saber, are you using focused wind mana to keep your blade concealed?" Lancer quickly asked.

As a matter of fact, she is. However, he shouldn't know that. She glared at Lancer.

"I see. You have a reason to conceal your sword." Lancer smiled confidently. "My guess is that the sword reveals your true name."

'Tch.'

"How unfortunate, Lancer. But you will never know the true name of my blade." She raised her blade and readied herself for the continuation of the battle. "I'm afraid you'll never get the chance." Lancer began walking forward towards Saber. "We'll see about that. I will discover what you are hiding, Saber," Lancer proclaimed.

Lancer propelled himself forward, aiming his spear at a low angle to Saber's left. Saber moved to parry the attack with her invisible sword with an underhanded swing from the right. The two weapons made contact and the resulting shock wave was created as a result of two powerful forces clashing together. The shock wave created chipped away at the wind mana concealing Saber's weapon and revealed, for a short moment, a glimpse of the weapon that Saber possessed. With all of her might, Saber pushed back Lancer's spear and quickly hopped backwards, creating distance between them.

Lancer smiled confidently as Saber's eyes widened. "You've exposed your sword to me."

"The Invisible Air is disintegrating?" Saber said with disbelief in her voice.

Lancer quickly pressed on the offensive, lunging at Saber with his spear aimed downward. Saber quickly jumped back and the spear met concrete, destroying the ground as the spear made contact. Lancer made several quick thrusts, this time aiming to plunge his spear through her. Saber moved her body side by side, narrowly managing to avoid having her body be skewered by Lancer's spear. Lancer then swung his spear in reverse, attempting to hit Saber with the hilt of his spear in a horizontal strike which Saber swiftly ducked. Then as she was getting up, Lancer suddenly reversed his swing and Saber quickly avoided it by rolling backwards losing a few strands of hair in the process.

Saber immediately went on the counter-offensive and swung her blade at Lancer. However, the strike was deflected by Lancer and he returned to the offensive, swinging his spear at Saber multiple times. The swings were either parried or simply blocked by Saber's sword. Lancer's next strike was a quick thrust at the center of her mass which promptly blocked with a downward swing of her blade, bringing both of their weapons close to the ground. The force between both weapons was so strong, it created another shock wave. One strong enough to cause the ground beneath to explode.

Amidst the smoke caused by the explosion, Saber ran towards the containers and used it to propelled herself backwards, doing a back flip to avoid a swing from Lancer and landed quite a distance away. Lancer, as if to taunt her, twirled his red spear around his body.

'Not good. The red spear is chipping away at the Invisible Air. If this keeps up, the wind mana surrounding my weapon will disappear. If it does, my identity will be revealed.'

"I've figured out the length of your blade now," Lancer revealed. "So now, I needn't worry about being struck no longer!"

Lancer attacked. Swinging his spear multiple times with no fear, Saber could only block. Saber quickly moved backwards to create some distance between her and Lancer, giving her just enough time to think. 'His spear is a formidable weapon, but I still have ways to counter it!'

Lancer's smiled took on a predatory edge and rushed forward.

'If I wait for him to attack with a thrust, one less powerful from the rest, then I could move to the side and let the thrust slide off of the side of my armor and strike him down where he stands.'

Saber raised her weapon and ran forward. She shifted slightly to the left just as she planned. However, something unexpected occurred. Instead of the attack merely bouncing to the side of the armor as she anticipated, she felt a sharp pain as she realized she's been struck by Lancer's spear. Blood rushed out of the right side of her body, weakening the Servant. Lancer relentlessly continued the attack, swinging and thrusting as Saber could only block the fast attacks.

Finally, Lancer relented, giving Saber enough time to gather her wits. Meanwhile, Lancer smiled proudly as a result of injuring Saber.

"Saber!" Irisviel's voice called out. Saber felt a warmth flowing through her as Irisviel's prana worked to fix the injury that she had just received.

"My thanks, Irsiviel. I'm fine now," she said. "Your healing is working." Saber quickly raised her weapon out in front of her with both hands.

"So, this won't be an easy victory, I see" Lancer said.

'How strange,' she thought. 'My armor should have deflected the strike. So how did he run his blade through me? Unless-!' She quickly used her left hand to feel the area of her body that was cut and realized that the armor was not pierced through. Saber made a realization. As her armor was made with magic, there exists the possibility of a weapon that exists to that could counter it. 'There's only one answer to this. His spear must have bypassed my magically woven armor!'

"So that's it."

"Oh?"

"I've figured out the secret of your weapon, Lancer. That red spear of yours negates magic."

"So that armor of yours was created using magic. Then if you were counting on it to protect you, I suggest you surrender immediately, Saber. You're as good as naked before my spear."

* * *

'This is starting to get boring.' The fight was interesting at first, but as the battle went on, his interest began to wane. At first, he waited to see if either one of them would pull out their Noble Phantasm and pull off their ultimate attack, but at this point, he felt as though he had waited long enough.

Xehanort stood up. "I'm going in," he said.

"Don't you dare!" was Caster's immediate response.

"I dare," was his snappy response.

"You're just a human!"

"Do you need another reminder of what this human can do, Caster?" he said in a somewhat cocky manner.

"As if!" She said. "You may be strong, sure. Strong enough to maybe take on one Servant, possibly. But to go down there and fight two of the three strongest classes? Are you mad?!"

"Don't worry so much, Caster." Xehanort dropped his Vanish Spell. He took a quick look at Caster in her 'Master' form. Short brown hair. Somewhat tanned skin. Green eyes. She has freckles across her face. She's dressed in a white outfit that resembles a dress that covers everywhere except her arms and just below her ankles. So far, her current appearance was a far cry from her actual appearance as a Servant. Good.

"Don't worry?!" she shouted as quietly as she can. A dark portal appeared before him.

"Yes. Don't worry about the fact there are two of them," He summoned a corridor of darkness to take him to the battlefield. As he stepped into the dark portal, a predatory grin appeared on his face. "It just means the odds are evened."

* * *

As Saber, now unarmored, prepared to strike Lancer at her fastest, she felt a powerful presence, one that felt cold and dark, to her right. Not only did she picked up on this, Lancer noticed this as well and both turned their attention to the dark shadowy portal that mysteriously appeared. Suddenly they both hear a clapping noise.

*clap clap clap*

A figure dressed in a black coat walked out of the darkness while clapping his hands in a somewhat mocking manner.

'What is he doing?' Saber thought as she memorized the newcomer's appearance. The black coat, appearing similar to a duster, has a large silver zipper that fastens at the top and zips down to seal the coat. It has silver drawstrings for the hood decorated with a large silver bead hanging from the end and a silver chain ornament adorned with four large cylindrical silver beads that fastens to a loop on either side of the collarbone region.

The mysterious figure stopped clapping. "Well, well. Look at what we have here," said the man in the black coat with a deep, masculine voice. "Two Servants, just ready to be plucked."

"Interrupting a duel between two honorable warriors...is a most distasteful act," Saber said. She turned to face the newcomer, who has the presence of a Servant, bringing her weapon in position as did Lancer.

"Who are you and why have you interrupted us?" Lancer demanded.

"I would think it would be fairly obvious, Saber and Lancer." The man in black placed his right hand where his heart is before using both of his hands to gesture at the both of them. "I am a Servant, just like you."

"Huh, is that so?" Lancer said. "Then tell me, which of the classes are you?"

"Again, refer to my previous statement." The man in the black coat rudely said before making a slight pause before continuing. "If, for some reason, you cannot discern who I am," the Mysterious Figure raised his right arm and in a flash of light, a strange weapon in a shape that vaguely resembles a key appeared. "Then perhaps you should allow me to give you both the answer." He pointed it at them.

**"Fire!" **

A large number of fire balls appeared from the tip of key-shaped weapon and directed themselves towards the two of them at a face pace. Saber blocked it with her sword and while Lancer moved around dodging to avoid being lit on fire. Soon, after the onslaught on fire based magic ended, the man in black introduced himself.

"I am Servant Caster."

"So you are," in a flash of blue light, Saber rematerialized her magical armor. "However, was that little light show supposed to scare the two of us?"

The man in black now identified as Caster laughed. However, it had a tone of mockery behind it. "Ha, ha, ha. How funny. I know you meant it in jest, Saber, but allow me to answer your question. No. That was not meant to scare you." Caster snapped his finger. Four extra copies of Caster appeared.

"This is."

Saber's prepared herself for battle.

**"Go."**

Each of the Casters copies began running towards the two Servants in an attempt to attack them. One clone attempted to strike Saber with his key-shaped weapon while another attempted to blast Saber from afar with magic of differing elements. The same situation applied to Lancer as well. While he was fending off one copy attacking, another one attempted to blast him in the back with magic. Each time the two Servants attempt to swing or thrust their weapons at them, they would prove themselves agile enough to avoid their attacks.

Each time the melee copies attacked, the two would have to quickly parry the attack or risk being shot. Though they both have high resistance to magic, they didn't want to take a chance in case Caster's Magic parameter's higher than their magic resistance. Meanwhile, the main Caster waited.

And so, they dodged and dodged and dodged until they both ended up backing into each other backs.

"Having trouble, Saber?" Lancer said.

"Not in particular," she said as she eyed the two copies in front of her. "Though it is annoying how they work together so seamlessly."

"Then perhaps we should join forces," offered Lancer.

"Perhaps. Do you have a plan?" she positioned her sword up in front of her.

"Of course." He shifted his head slightly to the right to make it more easier to speak to Saber in a hush tone. "Up to this point, we've been either dodging or deflecting his attacks. I say it's time to do something a little different."

"Get it on with it," Saber said with a bit of impatience.

He told Saber of his plan.

"I see. A good plan. I suppose you're just more than a pretty face, Lancer." she said.

She turned her attention to the copy wielding the strange weapon. "Prepare yourself!" She charged forward with her sword in hand. One of the two copy that she was facing went on to intercept her and the two clashed. The resulting clash forced both into a deadlock, one that Saber was slowly winning. The other copy took this as an opportunity to charge a shot. It gather as much mana as it could and launched a large chunk of ice, big enough to cave a person's head in, at Saber's back. Saber, sensing the magical attack, quickly grabbed the copy that she was currently clashing with her left hand and used it to block the magical ice. The chuck of ice immediately found refuge within the imitation's insides and the ice and copy soon disappeared. Saber immediately lunged at the second imitation and swiftly cut it down, dissipating the copy immediately.

Saber turned around to see if Lancer managed to defeat his two copy of Caster and, sure enough, found that he indeed did. Soon both turned to face Caster only to find that he wasn't there any longer.

"Where is he?" Saber said.

"Right behind you," A voice said from behind Saber. Saber immediately jumped away while simultaneously turning around to face Caster. Caster went into a battle stance which consisted of holding the weapon at a downward angle with his right hand above just above shoulder level and the left arm being held outward with an upward open palm. A visible aura of darkness began to surround Caster.

"And now, the real fun starts."

* * *

**Fate/No Heart**

* * *

**Part two of this will come out next month (sooo like, in 10-15 days, give or take an extra day or two). So for now, you know the drill. Review, favorite, follow, or any combination of the first three. Hope you enjoyed.  
**


	5. Six To Go

Fate/No Heart

Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate Series, Kingdom Hearts, or anything else that might appear in this fan work.

**This one came out late because of a bad case of the lazies. Anyway, Enjoy.  
**

Chapter 4: One Down

* * *

**NIGHT**

In the darkness of the night with only the moon for a source of light, three individuals were engaged in combat. A blond woman swordsman, a black haired spear man, and a hooded spell caster. The first two, Saber and Lancer respectively, had first engaged each other in a 'honorable' duel to the death. However, soon after Saber discarded her armor and both Servants began to clash once, they were rudely interrupted by a third party.

This third party, a mysterious figure in a black coat whose face was shrouded by his black hood, identified himself as the Servant Caster. He'd appeared before them in a portal of darkness, introduced himself, and then to assert his power promptly attacked both Saber and Lancer with a hail of magical fireballs, a barrage of clones, and a strange key-shaped weapon.

Kiritsugu, with the aid of his sniper rifle, the Walther WA200, looked at Caster with a critical eye. This Servant, Caster, fought differently compared to how most other Magi fought. While many Magi of the modern world were content to simply fight using only their Magecraft, Caster seems to have a different approach to combat. Unlike most Magi, Caster is actually capable of handling himself in close range combat. For the most part, the Servant was flinging various types of highly powerful magic that kept the both Lancer and Saber on the defensive. However, with their relatively high magic resistance, both Saber and Lancer were able to get Caster and strike at Caster only for their attacks to be repelled with a swing of his weapon, which proved strong enough to be able push both Saber and Lancer away from him with a single swing.

He also noticed something else. As one of the seven Masters of the Fourth Holy Grail War, he is capable of seeing not only the parameters of his Servant, Saber, but the parameters of others as well. However, as he focused heavily on Caster, he found that he was unable to get a read on any of his parameters. In short, he is currently incapable of viewing Caster's stats. He made a quick mental note of that.

The black haired master scanned the battlefield with the scope of his WA2000, looking to see if Caster's master was close by. A quick look around with the normal scope revealed absolutely nothing that he already knew so he switched to thermal. Knowing that many Magus would attempt to conceal their presence when their Servants are battling each other, the thermal scope would allow him to perceive the body heat of anyone even if they happen to be invisible. It's how he managed to locate Lancer's master.

A quick scan of the area revealed the location of another person, likely the master of Caster. From his position, Caster's master is roughly across him. He aimed his sniper rifle at the figure and quickly considered whether or not to shoot before shaking his head. He turned his head to the right, seeing that Assassin still hasn't noticed him yet.

'I can't do anything right now,' he thought. 'Even if I can kill Caster's master right now, if I do that, I'll be discovered the moment the round from my rifle discharged. Right now, I can't take that risk.'

He let out a annoyed growl. Not out of impatience but due to currently not being able to do anything besides scouting out the competition. For now, the only thing he could do was wait.

* * *

**Fate/No Heart**

* * *

Darkness. A force parallel to light. It is one of the two elements that compose a 'heart,' one of three parts which make up a person-the other being body and soul. The darkness within the heart is often time a source of great power. Capable of enhancing the strength and magical powers of anyone who can utilize it, those who can wield the power of darkness are often powerful and those that do become even more so. It is with the use of this power that Xehanort is able to fight two of the three strongest Servant classes by himself.

However, darkness can be quite dangerous-to both user and victim. Darkness can corrupt. Not only can it deal great physical harm to the receiver's body, it can weaken their 'heart' as well. If the heart is weakened by darkness, there is a possibility that the heart will succumb to the darkness within itself. If that happens, the victim will lose themselves to the darkness and their body will transform into something else. Only those with a strong heart and will are able to actively use the power of darkness and resist the negative effects that comes with it. Someone like himself, for instance.

Xehanort fired a burst of dark energy from his keyblade at Saber. Saber, attempting to quickly take Caster out, rushed at him. Relying on her magical armor and high magic resistance to take the brunt of the damage, she'd hoped to get close enough to cut Xehanort down.

At Saber's blunder, Xehanort smiled like a predator. The salvos of darkness hit Saber square in the chest area as she ran with her invisible sword ready to swing and stopped her in her tracks.

"Agh!" Saber let out a vocal cry of pain as she clutched the area where her heart reside. A brief moment of vulnerability. However, he was unable to exploit it right then and there as Lancer immediately leaped in front of Saber in a protective manner, spear ready to swing at a moment's notice.

"Saber, are you alright?!" he said loudly enough for Xehanort to hear. Saber mumbled a response that he couldn't quite hear and rose back up ready to continue with her invisible sword at hand.

'How persistent of her,' he thought. The two Servants began talking and what they were saying was lost on him as, sadly enough, he did not happen to have the ability hear hushed words from a considerable distance.

'The two are most likely plotting something.' He briefly considered interrupting them before shaking his head. 'Hmph. Let them talk, then. I am certain I can handle anything they throw at me. No amount of planning will help them.'

* * *

"Saber," Lancer leaped in front of Saber. Facing Caster, his spear was at the ready for any attacks from the black hooded Servant. "Are you alright?" he asked. Saber rose back up using her sword as a prop to help herself stand up.

"I am fine, Lancer." The spear wielder turned his head to take a quick glance at Saber and noticed that she was clutching the left side of her chest. To be more specific, she was clutching the area where her heart is. Lancer's orange colored eyes widened at this realization.

"Are you sure?" he asked out of concern.

'That damn Caster...'

"I'm sure," Saber growled at him. "I appreciate the concern, but if you have the time to focus on my well being, you have the time to focus on our mutual enemy." Saber raised her her sword. "Now, how do you propose we deal with this Servant?" She eyed Caster with irritation in her eyes. "His penchant for long ranged combat irks me."

'It is annoying how he simply just blasts us with magic from afar and slip away each time we get close enough to strike.'

"Do you really want my opinion or are you just asking for the sake of asking?" Lancer said playfully.

Saber allowed herself to smirk at the question. "I have my own ideas on how to go about this, but it's never a bad idea to ask for another person's opinion. Especially from one as skilled as yourself."

Lancer chuckled. "You do me great honor, Saber." Lancer pondered for a few moments before speaking. "Alright, now. I got something. See that weapon he's holding? That strange key-shaped weapon he's using as a catalyst for his magic?"

"Yes, of course. Are you proposing that we disarm him?"

"Exactly that. Get rid of that and the strength of his magic will most certainly be decreased, if not ceased entirely. It won't be easy, I'm sure. But with the two of us fighting together, I'm confident that we can do it."

"To do that, we're going to have to rush him."

Lancer increased his grip on his spear. "Then let us do just that."

The two began rushing at the black hooded Caster at an extremely high speed. Caster responded by immediately making space to rapidly cast spells of differing elements from his weapon. He raised his weapon above him and quickly shot out orbs of fire that homed in on them, absurdly huge chunks of ice that flew at them at break neck pace, orbs of electrical energy, and more, creating a large barrage of spells that was moving towards the two.

The two Servants weaved and dodged around the barrage of magic. Though Saber was hit a few times, her high magic resist enabled her to charge through the barrage with only somewhat minor damage. Lancer, himself, fared better. With his high agility and anti-magic red spear, he was able to dart around the barrage of spells and pass through with no damage.

The distance that was between them and Caster was minor now. Saber made the first strike against Caster. Closing what little distance that now exist between the two of them, Saber charged forward and swung her sword. The black hooded Caster responded by raising his weapon. He parried the attack and blocked several slashes from Saber, who then backed off. Lancer, then, immediately attacked Caster with several speedy thrusts. Caster attempted to avoid being skewered by side stepping the thrusts and, for the most part, he did. However Lancer's speed was a little too much for him and Caster's black coat now had several small cuts.

**"WIND!"**

Caster cast another spell to force the black haired servant away from him. The wind around him shifted and blew with the force of a very strong gust in the direction of the spear master. Lancer, not wanting to be blown away, attempted to remain in place. Using his spear, he inserted it deep into the ground and used it as an anchor to prevent him from flying away. Caster, realizing his intentions, quickly raised his weapon and began casting another spell. Very soon, a visible energy began pulsating around Caster and spread itself outward in a shape of circle. Lancer, who was preoccupied, was touched by this energy and he began to float upward.

"What the-?" He didn't have time to say anything else as he was quickly blown away by the wind and crashed face first into the wall behind him. Both spells ended shortly after.

* * *

"What are you doing, Lancer?! Get back up!" Lancer's master said. Through their connection to each other as Master and Servant, his master, Kayneth, ordered him to stand up and fight. Lancer did as he was told and stood up.

"Get back in and fight, Lancer. Quit holding back!" he said.

"I am not holding back, my master."

"Are you? Then why have you not used your second spear?"

"I was saving it for Saber. She is, after all, the biggest threat."

"Right now, the biggest threat seems to be Caster. Tell me, why have you not killed him already? You have Saber aiding you and you still have not killed him. Am I being led to believe that you, Lancer, one of the three most powerful classes, are incapable of completing this task?!"

"Of course not, my master."

"Then use your Noble Phantasm!"

His master ceased communication with him. Lancer looked onward at the battlefield where Saber and Caster are locked in a struggle.

Saber jumped in with her blade swinging downward. Caster, who had just only notice, raised his weapon to block. The two weapons clashed and both were locked in a clash. Saber attempted to force his weapon from him through sheer strength. She pushed Caster downward and for a moment, it seemed as though Caster was about to fall.

Then suddenly, the dark aura that had enveloped Caster near the start of the battle resurfaced again. As the dark aura grew bigger, Caster began to push back.

Surprised that she was being pushed back in a battle of strength, by Caster of all people, Saber redoubled her effort but found that it was for naught. The black hooded servant successfully pushed her back, sending her backwards a few feet.

Caster raised his weapon once again to cast yet another spell but was interrupted by Lancer who gained Caster's attention once more by attacking from the side. With his high speed, Lancer swung his spear left and right over and over. Caster, who was having slight difficulty keeping up with Lancer, was forced to defend himself.

**CLANG CLANG CLANG**

The sound of two metallic weapons clashing into each other was made whenever Lancer's spear made contact with Caster's weapon. Lancer pressed his assault by continually attacking Caster with spear. Caster, who could only defend himself by guarding, was being pushed back every time he blocked one of Lancer's strikes.

Lancer, who is now in proximity of his second yellow spear, continued pushing Caster backward. Once he was in position, he picked it with his foot, unsealed it in midair, and grabbed it with his left hand while simultaneously attacking with the red spear in his right hand.

His red spear, Gae Dearg, holds the ability to cut through any projections made of prana. His yellow spear, Gae Buidhe, can inflict wounds that cannot be healed by normal means. With these two spears, Lancer can cut through any magic projectiles and inflict wounds that cannot be healed normally or by magecraft.

Giving Caster no time for pause, Lancer continued attacking him. With an additional spear in his left hand, Lancer was able to swing multiple times. Caster, who was having a little difficulty handling just one spear, was now having a hard time keeping up. Like a whirlwind, Lancer swung with all his might at a face pace. Left, right, center, the spear-man aimed to kill. Lancer swung his right spear and it was blocked by Caster key-shaped weapon. Lancer immediately swung his left spear at the black hooded servant just as the his right spear was blocked, forcing Caster to duck and roll away from Lancer. On his knees, Caster raised his weapon to cast a spell but was immediately intercepted by Lancer who had followed him in pursuit. Lancer swiped at Caster's weapon with his spear.

**CLANG**

Caster's weapon flew out of his hand and landed behind him. Lancer pointed his two spears at the hooded servant.

"You've lost," he said with a smile on his face. "I'd admit, for a Caster, you're very skilled at close range combat and your magical prowess is truly staggering. Be that as it may, however, it was foolish of you to engage two servants at once."

"What are you waiting for, you fool?" His Master, Kayneth, shouted. "Kill him, now!"

"My apologies, my Master." He looked at Caster in straight in the eye. Well, he hoped that Caster was meeting his eyes as it was impossible to peer through the darkness of his hood. "It is a shame that I have to kill you." He raised the spear in his left hand and pulled his arm backwards, preparing to thrust it through Caster. However, unbeknownst to him, Caster dark aura began to flare up once more and his right hand was consumed with a dark energy.

Suddenly, a loud boisterous voice cried from above.

"Wait!"

The air grew tense, the skies rumbled, and strangely enough, the sound of a scared young man echoed through the air.

"Waaaaaa-!"

A flash of blue lightning began to crash down into the ground and Saber, Caster, and Lancer himself looked up to find a large muscular man with red hair and beard riding a chariot led by two divine bulls. The chariot landed very loudly on the ground and a huge cloud of smoke and dust appeared. Everyone waited for the scene to clear. Then, when the smoke cleared and everyone could see, the large man opened his mouth.

"Everyone! Sheath your blades and lay down your arms for you are in the presence of a king!" Like a person who does not know how to keep a secret, he began to blurt out important information with discretion that could only come from those who are very confident in themselves.

"I am Iskander, King of Conquerors! In this glorious battle for the Holy Grail, I am of the Rider class of Servants!" Lancer, along with Saber who was also very surprised, could only stare at Rider at his lack of secrecy. Soon, he noticed a young black haired man of European descent was beside Rider and found that he, according to his widened eyes and open mouth, was also stunned at this turn of events as well.

'What is going on?'

* * *

Xehanort was displeased. Not that he was on his knee with a spear pointed on his head, mind you, that was part of life. It was something that he accepted would happen when he decided to eliminate the Servants rather than the Masters of the Holy Grail War. No, what he was most displeased about right now is being interrupted just when he was about to unleash a devastating attack on the Servant who forced him into this position in the first place.

He was going to unleash a highly powerful spell called Dark Firaga. As it's name implies, it's a magical fire. Unlike the regular Firaga, which is purely fire elemental, Dark Firaga is also powered by the Darkness. Firaga, a spell already powerful enough to give visible scorch marks on Saber's magical armor, becomes strong enough to blow back anyone with an explosive force when it's channeled with darkness. Add point black range and Lancer's lower magic resistance when compared to that of Saber's meant that spell would've been enough to put Lancer into a grave state.

That was what he was going to do, but the sudden appearance of that red headed fool broke his concentration, something that he needed to put the Servant that was still pointing his spear in front of him six feet under. So instead, he was going to do something different.

'While everyone is distracted by that bumbling idiot,' he turned his attention from Rider to Lancer. 'I'll strike him down.' He reached his right arm out and called out for his keyblade. The keyblade is connected to his heart. No matter where or when, if he calls for it, it will come to him without fail. The keyblade responded and reappeared in his hand. Empowering himself with the darkness within his heart, he boosted his own strength, speed, everything needed to cut down the Servant in front of him. The dark aura that typically manifested when channeling the dark energy flared up once more.

"Lancer, watch out!" Saber must've noticed what he was about to do, but the warning she gave came too late. Lancer, who was preoccupied comprehending the bewildering spectacle that was Iskander, King of Conquerors, was caught off guard when Saber gave the warning.

Xehanort, faster than he was previously, rose up from the ground. He swung the keyblade in his hand and slashed at Lancer's chest. With his increased strength, he cut down the Servant in front of him like butter.

"Gah!"

Blood gushed out of the wound and Lancer stumbled backwards. He dropped both spears onto the ground and tried his best to maintain his balance. Unfortunately for him, Xehanort was not having any of that. He quickly charged up a Dark Firaga and fired it from his keyblade. The dark projectile launched itself from the tip of the keyblade and flew quickly at Lancer, aiming specifically at the open wound that he gave to Lancer. The ball of dark flame made its impact, creating a large fiery explosion that was a mix of the color black, white, and purple which enveloped the weakened master of the spears.

The explosion ended. All that could be seen afterward was Lancer flat on his back. Saber made her way to him and spoke to him, fearing for the worse yet hoping for the best.

"Lancer? Are you alright?"

No response. Lancer is dead.

* * *

**Fate/No Heart**

* * *

**Xehanort, you dirty, dirty fighter. Sorry for the late update, everyone. Real life happened. Nothing serious, just dealing with some extra work load. That and some serious bouts of laziness. Anyway, I got this one out, so I hope you guys enjoyed it. You know the drill. Review, favorite, follow, or any combination of the three. More show of support is always appreciated.**


	6. Golden Armor Black Armor

Fate/No Heart

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, the Fate Series, or anything related. If you have ever paid to view this fan work, you've probably been scammed. If so, I would highly recommend getting your money back.

**I watch the episode where Lancer died again and I gotta say, that was sad. I am glad I've killed off Lancer with some dignity. ****Keep it up, Xehanort, you S.O.B. **

Chapter 5: The more things change, the more they stay the same.

* * *

Lancer was surprised at the sudden appearance of the very large, very boisterous, red-haired man who identified himself as Rider. He was even more surprised when Rider, who proclaimed himself as Iskander, King of Conquerors, blatantly revealed his true identity to everyone at the warehouse district. It was such a surprise, that Lancer, the master of the spears, had trouble comprehending the sheer audacity of Rider and as such briefly forgot about Caster.

It proved to be his undoing.

'What the-?!'

"Lancer! Watch out!" Saber voice rang out. Unfortunately, before he could react to the warning Saber gave to him, he felt a cold metallic weapon cutting through his armor and slashing across his chest.

"Gah!"

Looking forward, he found that Caster, who was previously on the ground on his knees, was the one to inflict this attack. Blood quickly poured out the wound that Caster gave him. In agonizing pain, he dropped his spears and clutched his wound while attempting to maintain his balance. He finally took notice of Caster's aura and saw that it was flaring up. Taking that as a signal that Caster was going to unleash a devastating spell, he attempted to move out of the way, no matter how futile the action may be. However, he found that he was not moving. To be more specific, he found that he could not move.

'More magic?!' he thought. Seeing as he was nearly dead and unable to move, thoughts of defeat began creeping in. 'So this is how it ends, huh?' He closed his eyes. 'I apologize for failing you, Master.'

Caster launched the spell from his weapon. The dark ball of flame flew directly from the tip of the mage's weapon to the open wound where blood was still pouring out. Once the magical energy made contact with him, it consumed him in an explosion that enveloped his entire body. Lancer attempted to scream as the dark flames consumed him, but no sound could come out of his mouth. His body fell to the ground.

Soon, the light in Lancer's eyes went out.

* * *

**Fate/No Heart**

* * *

Lancer's body, riddled with burns, laid on the ground. Little by little, the prana that made up Lancer's body and his weapon waned and began to dissipate. After a minute of waiting, Lancer's body was no more and any chance of him coming back were nil.

"How pathetic," he said. "To have perished so easily..." He had expected more from Lancer. Though to be perfectly honest, he did just unload a very devastating spell at close range. "Perhaps that's just to be expected."

"You..." Saber said. Xehanort looked at her. He saw that her body was shaking. Was she shaking from sadness or rage? She stood up from the ground where Lancer's body once was. Her face has a look of hatred on it.

**"YOU DISHONORABLE CRETIN!"** She shouted.

'Definitely rage.' he thought.

"Dishonorable? Pray tell, Saber, what exactly is it that I did to warrant a reaction such as this?" Xehanort smiled, knowing full well what the blond knight was referring to.

She pointed her invisible sword at him.

"You know exactly what you did!" she snarled.

Xehanort laughed quietly.

"Ha, ha, ha. Perhaps you should explain, Saber. For the sake of proper understanding, you should identify what it is that I did that has upset you so much."

"You struck Lancer down when he wasn't looking!" Saber appeared to have gotten even angrier.

'Heh.'

"Oh, do you mean that? Maybe I should explain. You see, I was merely taking the initiative, Saber. Nothing more, nothing less." And it was true. Often times, the first to strike were the ones who won battles. Those who do not will often lose.

"Taking the initiative?!" Saber shouted. "What you did was dishonorable. Like a coward, You've took advantage of Lancer while he was distracted by Rider." She pointed at the big burly red head who merely rubbed the back of his head.

"All is fair in love and war, Saber." He rebutted. "And in case you have not noticed yet, this is war."

"There are standards that must be upheld even in a battlefield!" Saber retorted. "In a battle, the combatants are expected to fight with honor, to fight fairly and without deceit!"

'This must be what they call a knight's chivalry,' Xehanort thought. His brows narrowed, mildly annoyed at her personal code of conduct.

"Are those your beliefs?" he asked.

"Yes."

How pitiful.

"If that is what you truly believe, then I am afraid that you have already lost this war, Saber. For you see, your ideals mean nothing in this war."

Saber's eyes widened and her mouth opened in shock.

"Your code, your chivalry...it will only serve to hold you back, Saber. If you wish to stand a chance in winning, I would highly advised you abandon that line of thought. If you cannot, then your defeat will be certain."

Saber raised her blade.

"How dare you..." she said. "To insult chivalry, the code of honor which has guided me for so long..." her face contorted into a nasty expression, one of hatred. "I will put an end to you!"

'So she intends on continuing? If so, this is a good opportunity to show her the weakness of her ideals.'

Xehanort tossed his Keyblade at Saber's feet. Saber blinked in surprise. Xehanort spread out his arms outward in a half circle, palms open, as if daring her to attack.

"Go on, then, Saber. Attack me. That is, if your code will let you."

His Servant's voice, the true Caster, rang in his head.

_"What are you doing?" _she questioned him.

_"What do you think it looks like?"_ he told her sarcastically. "_I'm __mocking her ideals."_

_"Really? Doesn't that seem a bit foolish?"_

_"Oh, please. Her 'chivalry' won't allow her to attack someone who is unarmed."_

_"What if she decides to conveniently break her code and attack you?" _

_"I am no fool. If she tries to attack me,"_ He's planning on it, in fact. _"Then she will_ _die." _Caster has no idea how many people kept falling for that particular trick.

Xehanort looked at the blue Servant in front of him. Though enraged, she seem to be having trouble deciding if she should attack him or not. Still, her hesitation to attack him told him all he needed to know.

"What's wrong, Saber?" he asked. "Weren't you just about to attack me?"

"You...You...You continue to mock me?!" Saber shouted.

"That is quite enough!" Rider interrupted. Both Xehanort and Saber quickly turned their attention to Rider. "You have made your point, Caster!" The red-haired man said. "Though I do not know who she is, I can see that Saber is a proud warrior who wishes to participate in a battle of honor and integrity. That is why, Caster, that I ask that you case this nonsense immediately."

Xehanort said nothing at first. He was particularly annoyed at Rider for interrupting him while he was goading Saber into attacking. He looked at Saber and he noted that she looks as though she wanted to say something but couldn't. He returned his attention to Rider and the dilemma at hand. Perhaps he could turn this into something else. Maybe another battle would suffice.

"...Very well." His Keyblade, which he had tossed at Saber's feet, vanished. "Since you are here..." he crossed his arms and turned his body to the huge Servant. "Then I suppose that means you wish to fight?"

"That is exactly right!" Rider was quick to respond. "However," he said. "When I came to this area in a hurry, I was hoping to fight more than just one Servant." He stroked his beard.

"Are you insinuating that I, alone, am not enough for you?" Xehanort questioned Rider.

"Oh, no. I am not saying that. I can tell from your battle with both Lancer and Saber that you are truly a formidable foe, indeed. What I had meant is that I was hoping to face off against all of the Servants of the Holy Grail War in a single battle!"

_"Is this Servant mad or something?"_ Caster asked.

_"No, that would be Berserker, Caster. The Servant in front of me is of the Rider class. Though I do admit, the prospect of defeating all of the competition at once does sound appealing."_

"Well, sorry for disappointing you, Rider," Xehanort said. "But I'm afraid Lancer is already out of the war."

"Ah, yes, I know." He said this with a tone of disappointment before quickly switching to a more optimistic one. "But at the very least, I can fight most of them right here, right now!"

"What do you mean?" Saber interjected. She had a look of mild confusion on her face.

"What do you mean 'what do you mean,' Saber?" Rider began to explain. "An impressive battle that had started between two Servants before escalating into a greater one when Caster intervened. The clashing of weapons and the expulsion of magic, I would be surprised if there was a person involved in the War who didn't observed your battle!"

_"Is this true, Caster?" _Xehanort asked.

_"Yes."_

_"Why did you not inform me of this?_" He questioned.

_"You did not ask. And besides, were you not the one who managed to detect Assassin first?"_

_"...I hate to admit a flaw, but it appear that I cannot detect invisible Servants." _He quickly turned his attention back to the scene.

"Then...that means-!" Saber quickly put the pieces together.

"Yes, Saber! There are other Heroic Spirits here, hiding in the shadows to gleam information from those involved in the battle that had just taken place." He looked to the sky and raised his right hand upward in a open palm before clenching it into a fist before shouting in an energetic manner."Heroic Spirits, born again through the Holy Grail, gather here and now!" Xehanort swore the man got even louder. "Those too craven and cowardly to show themselves tonight will draw the scorn of Iskander, King of Conquerors!"

* * *

At first, nothing happened. But soon, particles of light appeared which, in the middle of the night, stood out and gained the eye of everyone present. The particles quickly congregated together, revealing the Servant that had swiftly 'slain' Assassin standing upon an outdoor light pole.

"So, a lesser being who dares name himself king, even in my presence."

The Servant clad in golden armor, Archer, appeared and looked none too happy.

"I fail to see where the problem lies," Rider responded. "After all, I am Iskander, the legendary King of Conquerors."

"What nonsense!" Archer quickly said in response. "You are deluding yourself. I am the one true king of this world. All others are merely pretenders."

"Oh?" Rider started. "If you're that insistent of your claim, then name yourself. No true king should ever have trouble with something as simple as giving his own name."

The light bulb that powered the pole that Archer is standing on began to flicker on and off.

"You would dare question me?" Archer said with venom in his voice. "Me, the one true king?!" The light bulb cracked. He glared at Rider before speaking again. "If you cannot discern my identity even in my magnificently glorious presence," an almost blinding bright light appeared behind Archer, the very same light that appeared at the manor. "Then your ignorance has sealed your doom!" Weapons of various types began to protrude out of the light. Spears, blades, anything that can be used to cut, stab, and maim.

Just as Archer, with a maniacal glee on his face, prepared to unleash a maelstrom of weapons onto Rider, everyone felt a presence of another Servant joining in. Appearing in a fashion similar to Xehanort's entrance, the Servant arrived in a twister of darkness that had erupted from the ground. As soon as it came, it disappeared. Emerging from the darkness, a Servant clad entirely in black metal armor that resembled those worn by medieval knights. Interestingly enough, a bright red light was coming out from his visor.

Xehanort quickly noted that the Servant has a dark fog surrounding the entirety of his body.

'This Servant...it must be Berserker.'

As if to confirm his thoughts, the armored Servant began to roar.

"Boy, how powerful is that Servant?" He heard Rider asked his young Master. The somewhat long black haired, pale-faced young man, who also has a terrified look on his face, responded by shaking his head.

"I don't know...I can't tell!" Rider's master said in a scared tone.

"What do you mean?" Rider questioned him. "Are you not a Master chosen by the Holy Grail? You 'can' sense their strengths and weaknesses, right?"

"I can't sense a thing! I can sense that 'thing' is definitely a Servant, but it's like Caster, I can't get a read on its status or anything else about it!"

'How interesting this situation has become.' Xehanort thought. He uncrossed his arms to stroke his chin. 'To send a Servant out in a hostile environment when tensions are high, I wonder what will happen next.'

The Black Knight did not anything and merely looked at Archer. Archer took notice of this.

"Who gave you permission to gaze upon me, you rabid dog?" The light behind Archer shifted and was no longer aimed at Rider. Now it is aimed at Berserker, instead. "May your death provide me with some modicum of entertainment, mongrel." he said with a tone of finality.

'This ought to be interesting.'

Archer launched two weapons at Berserker. The weapons flew at Berserker. Berserker, in response to the impending danger, retaliated by snatching the first blade that was about to hit him and using it to deflect the second weapon, a spear, creating an explosion in the process.

"How impressive." He said. For a Servant based on the attribute of insanity, such a display of dexterity was truly noteworthy.

"You dare lay your filthy hands on my treasures?" Archer, however, did not sound too pleased at all. In fact, he was rather angry. "You must long for a painful death, cur!"

The light behind Archer grew in both height and width. Ripples were made along the portal of light as Archer brought forth more and more weapons, intending to overwhelm Berserker with sheer firepower.

"Let us all see just how long those parlor tricks of yours..." Archer began. "Will keep you alive!"

Archer fired off a volley of weapons at once. Berserker reacted by grabbing one of the weapons that was flying at him, pushing him backwards a fair distance before stopping and using the newly obtained weapon along with the first weapon to block the incoming projectiles, creating explosions whenever he successfully did so. A projectile suddenly came from above and hit the ground in front of him, creating an explosion. Amidst the smoke, Berserker jumped and threw the sword he was using at the other blade that was flying at him. Both collided and instead of creating an explosion, they both bounced off of each other harmlessly. Berserker reached out and grabbed the very same weapon he had just thrown and used it to deflect another blade to the area behind him, creating another explosion.

While all of this occur, Xehanort watched the battle from the sidelines with a critical eye, intending to analyze how both Archer and Berserker fight. From what he can tell, Archer appears to be a one trick pony- capable of only firing projectiles from a distance. Given that he is Archer, a class specializing in long ranged combat, that is a given. However, what is concerning about Archer are the projectiles he uses. Instead of using arrows or the likes as projectiles, the golden Servant appears to be using weapons of varying types that can apparently explode. There appears to be no limits to the amount he can shoot out and these explosions are definitely no joke as evidenced by craters covering the area where Berserker stands. If he were to get hit by one of these directly or get caught in the explosion, he would be gone in a heartbeat. Clearly, a head on battle at this point would be suicide.

As for Berserker, what concerns him is his apparent skill despite being of the Berserker class. From what information he knows, the class that the Black Knight belongs to has a special ability. This ability is known as Mad Enchantment. Regardless of the rank, the parameters of the Servants under its effects are raised. However, in exchange for the boost in power, the mental facilities of the Servants are hindered. The higher the rank, the greater the retardation of mind undergoes. So it would stand to reason that Berserker, a Servant that trades one's own sanity for strength, would become less skilled in combat. From what he has seen in this battle, that is not the case.

Berserker is far too skilled. His ability to react is astonishingly high as he effortlessly dodges and uses the projectiles against Archer and his ability to use weaponry propelled from the portal of light is of great concern. It could be a simple case of Mad Enchantment not being activated, but the loud roar the Servant gave when he first appeared was evidenced enough to convince Xehanort that Berserker was under its effects from the very get go.

It appears Berserker is hiding something. He wanted to know.

Berserker threw the blade he gotten from Archer at the pole the Golden Servant's standing on. He was forced to jump off when the pole was cut horizontally in half.

"Fool...I belong among the heavens," Archer said in anger. "Yet you would have me trod the ground like you?!" The light behind Archer increased in size once again. Unlike last time, when it only grew considerably bigger, this time the difference in size was enormous. About as wide as a small field and as tall as a modern suburban house, countless weapons protrude out of every space of the bright portal. It was such a sight that Xehanort could not help but let something slip from his mouth.

"Oh my Kingdom Hearts, that's huge." he said. A direct confrontation, he'd decided then and there, was not a valid option for dealing with Archer.

"Mongrel! Nothing shall remain will remain of your body when I am through with you!" he shouted.

Right as Archer was about to unleash a hailstorm of explosive weaponry upon Berserker, he stopped.

"What?" The golden Servant said. It appears his Master is contacting him. "You dare order a King to withdraw? To leave the battle unfinished? You have much nerves, Tokiomi!

'So it would appear his master has called Archer back.' Xehanort thought. 'Hopefully, his Master, Tokiomi Tohsaka, had to use a Command Seal to do so.' Any advantage would be much appreciated against Archer.

The light behind Archer vanished and the scattered weapons among the wrecked environment that did not explode disappeared in a glow of golden light.

"You were fortunate, mad dog." Archer said. He turn to where the rest of the Servants and Xehanort are standing. "By our next meeting, see that you've culled your numbers. Only a true hero is worthy to gaze upon my glorious presence." He turned his back to them and promptly vanished.

* * *

"It would seem that Archer's master is not as stubborn or courageous as his Servant." Rider commented. "So...what now?" he asked.

Saber gripped her sword.

"Perhaps we should get back to what we were doing before we were so rudely interrupted," she said while getting in a battle ready position.

'She still wants to fight?' he thought. 'After what I have seen, I don't particularity want to fight right now.' He would much preferred to plan on how to deal with both Archer and Berserker later on.

"I'm afraid I'll have to decline your 'generous' offer, Saber." He said. "As of now, it's getting close to dawn, a time most people have to wake up. As much as I would like to eliminate you here and now, I fear risking the reveal of the Holy Grail War to the unknowing public. And that, as you should know, is something that must not happen, Saber."

"Tch...You!" Saber was barely holding it together.

Rider made a rather disappointing sigh. "Very well, I see your point, Caster. But when we meet again, I expect you to up a good fight."

"That is assuming we even meet again, Rider." He responded. "However, if we do meet again, I expect you to do the same."

"You have no need to worry, Caster. I'll be ready for you!"

He contacted Caster.

_"Come, Caster. We must depart."_ He ordered.

_"Very well."_

Using the power of darkness, Xehanort opened a portal of darkness to his right.

"I bid you farewell." He turned to his right and entered, leaving behind two Servants and a mad dog at the warehouse district.

* * *

**Fate/No Heart**

* * *

**This was a pain in the ass to get through. I have no genuine excuses unless you count me procrastinating by playing KH 2.5 HD remix as an proper excuse. Anyway, you should expect some eeeeevil shenanigans from Xehanort next chapter.  
**

** As usual, if there's something you like or disliked, leave a review (it's called 'review' for a reason). If you are reading this story and are enjoying this fan work thus far but have not Favorited or Follow, I strongly urge you to do so. Why? Cause I like it when people do that. **

**Thank you for reading and see you next time in the next chapter of Fate/No Heart.**


	7. Meeting a Creepy Old Bald Man

Fate/No Heart

Disclaimer: Something something, do not own. Something something, don't own that either. Something something, insert witty comment here.

**I don't know if you guys noticed, but I've updated my profile. Granted it is not a whole lot, but it does have future works and sequels that I'm planning on doing listed. Some of you might want to check it out.  
**

**EDIT 1: Can't believe I forgot to write more of the part concerning Iri and Saber. That's embarrassing. At least this chapter has the highest word count now.**

Chapter 6: Something evil is coming this way. Run.

* * *

**DAWN**

Xehanort stepped out of the portal of Darkness into the forest where he'd summoned Caster. From where he stood, he was surrounded by the trees from all sides, though there was a gap from which he could see the skies. He looked up and saw that the light from the sun began to take away the darkness and color the skies red.

"Appear before me, Caster." Xehanort called out to his Servant, who appeared while casting off her invisibility and disguise in the process.

He needed to ask her a question. One of which is his Servant's relationship with the blond haired, blue-armored Servant.

"What is it that you require of me?" she asked.

He got straight to the point.

"Tell me, Caster," Xehanort said. "What is your relationship with Saber?"

She blinked.

"Why do you ask?" she said.

So she intends to play it that way.

"I ask because back at the warehouse district, I noticed that you were staring at Saber with great intensity."

"And why not? She is of the Saber class. It would make sense for me to focus my attention on her." She retorted.

"I've heard what you called her," he said in response. Caster eyes widened ever so slightly. "You've called her by her name. Artoria. That is Saber's true name, is it not?"

Caster crossed her arms.

"You are quite perceptive, Master." She made a slight pause before continuing. "However, if you think I would simply tell you of my connection with Saber just because you ask, then I'm afraid you will be sorely disappointed." Caster made a small smirk on her face. A type of smirk that only those that has the pleasure of knowing something the other party doesn't would make.

How annoying.

"Do not play these games with me, Caster." He said with a stern tone. "For if you do, you'll find that the consequences for doing so will not be pleasant."

"Angry?" she asked.

"I do not like it when information is kept from me, particularly information that could possibly prove useful to know in the long run."

"Then how about a trade?"

This is getting irritating.

"A trade?"

"Yes, a trade. An act of equivalent exchange. I have something you want and you have something that I want as well."

He wanted to just incapacitate her and simply extract the memories from her mind right then and there. Sadly though, he can't. As much as he would like to do that, It would almost certainly strain the Master-Servant relationship between the two and create unnecessary complications in the future. So unfortunately, he had to complied.

"...What is it?" He asked. He might as well get this over with.

"I'll make this simple," she stated. "Allow me to be the one to take Saber out and I'll shall let you know not only of my relationship with Saber, but our history as well. A good offer, is it not?"

He had to admit, that was a good offer.

"Very well," he said. "I accept your terms."

* * *

**Fate/No Heart**

* * *

**DAY  
**

In the Einzbern Castle, a grand castle located within a forest owned by the Einzberns, Kiritsugu and Irisviel sat at a desk on opposing sides in a well lit room while both Maiya and Saber stood by their side. They were currently making plans on how to deal with each of the various Servants that were summoned in the Holy Grail War.

"Don't engage Caster?" Saber said before looking at Kiritsugu with angry eyes. "What manner of command is this, Kiritsugu?" she demanded.

Kiritsugu reached for the coffee on his desk and took a sip from it before setting it back down on the table.

"A pragmatic one," Kiritsugu said. "We don't know much about his abilities, his strengths, his weaknesses, his name, not even his parameters." He put his hands together and placed them under his chin, his elbows touching the desk. "If Iri or I were to send you into battle, we would be sending you into combat without any proper information of his capabilities."

"But we do know of his capabilities!" Saber shouted. "I've fought him. I've seen what he can do. I can beat him!"

"He managed to hold both you and Lancer at bay for most of the battle," Kiritsugu retorted. "As it was his first battle with both of you, he couldn't have known what you both were capable of. Now that he's fought you, he'll be better prepared for next time."

"But-"

"And besides, Saber," Kiritsugu interrupted her. "Didn't you noticed? He was holding back the entire time."

Saber paused at his words for before speaking.

"What do you mean?"

"Did you really not noticed?" He sighed, somewhat disappointed at his Servants lack of observation skills. "Though your strength parameter is not the greatest, it is still relatively high. Yet when you clashed blades with Caster, a Servant who traditionally has the weakest strength, he was able to push you away. You may have not noticed since you were too busy at the time, but each time you clashed, he manifested a dark aura and each time he did, he managed to become stronger than you.

And I doubt that's all," he added.

"There's more?" Irisviel asked, wanting to add to the discussion.

"Of course," he said. "Caster is a puzzle. His class belongs to those who would normally fights exclusively with magecraft yet he fights not only with magic but his weapon as well. Those of the Caster class have strength parameters are supposed to be the weakest, yet he can hold off both Saber and Lancer. We don't know his name and I doubt we ever will because there's no one in any stories that we know of that has all of his characteristics. What makes this worst is that there is no doubt in my mind that what we saw was merely the tip of the iceberg."

He stared at Saber in the eye.

"That is why, Saber, you'll won't be fighting Caster. That is why you'll be sitting in the sidelines with Iri while both Maiya and I collect more information on him."

"But-!"

"No buts, Saber. This isn't up to discussion." Kiritsugu said with a tone of finality.

In response, Saber left the room practically fuming with rage and into the halls of the Castle.

"Saber!" Concerned, Irisviel went off after her.

Kiristugu ignored this and pulled out the latest edition of the daily newspaper, the main headline of which reads:

**_TWO FOREIGNERS FOUND SHOT DEAD IN THE HEAD_**

* * *

Saber could not believe it. To say that she was currently angry would be understating it.

'Why won't he just let me fight?' her thoughts turned to Kiritsugu. 'He must still be underestimating me. That has to be it. He underestimates my strength. Is it because I'm a woman?'

As resentment against Kiristugu begins to build up in her mind, her heart began to quiver and sink. Her body became enveloped in a small, hardly noticeable aura of darkness.

"Saber!" Irisviel called out from behind her.

Saber snaps out of it and the aura of darkness dissipated immediately.

She turned her head and found Irisviel running towards her. When she reached Saber, Irisviel stopped to catch her breath before speaking.

"Are you okay, Saber?" she asked with a concerned tone in her voice.

"O-of course," the blue Servant responded somewhat hesitantly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Irisviel said nothing at first, perhaps noticing that Saber is lying to her.

"Saber..." Irisviel began to say. "Kiristugu only said those things because it was true. We can't fight against a Servant no one knows anything about and..." she paused for a bit. "I can't really say anything that Kiritsugu hasn't already said.

"Does he think I'm weak?" Saber suddenly said with a mild vindictive tone.

"No!" Irisviel was quick to defend Kiristugu. "Of course not, Saber. I have no doubt that you're very strong and I know that he knows too. But we're at a disadvantage right now."

She began listing off all the reasons. "Assassin's still alive, Archer firepower is too overwhelming, Berserker is too strong, and Caster is a walking mystery. Look, I know he can be off-putting, but I can say with absolute certainty that he's just trying to ease the burden of your battles, Saber."

Saber never thought of it like that. When Irisviel put it in their perspective, she suppose it was normal for them to exercise caution like that. Still, for her to throw a tantrum like that. How embarrassing.

"So," Irisviel asked again. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Irisviel." Saber said. "Just a little of ashamed of myself."

* * *

**MID-DAY**

In his haste to make it to this world in time for the Holy Grail War, Xehanort had neglected the most necessary of supplies, something most crucial for someone looking to stay alive.

Food.

As a result, he'd ditched his Black Coat for the time being in exchange for more 'civilian' attire so he could go out and buy something to eat without attracting any unnecessary attention to himself. Said attire consisted of a black shirt covered by a small black jacket with no sleeves along with black pants.

At the time, he had assumed that he could simply purchase food from the moogles that he had hoped would have set up shop in this world as they had in all the other worlds he had visited. Sadly that was not the case.

That was why he was wandering around the shopping district in Miyama Town, a small suburban area set in Fuyuki. Everywhere he'd looked, there were stores everywhere. The choices were immense, so he had a hard time deciding where to go. In the end, however, he chose to purchase something called a 'taiyaki' from a street vendor for '80 yen.' He paid using the money he had stolen earlier.

He examined the strange food in his hand. This 'taiyaki' appears to be some sort of pastry. He admittedly found it rather strange that the confection was shaped like a fish but ultimately decided to give a chance. After all, he'll never know if he'll enjoy it if he won't even try it. He bit into the pastry and found that he liked it so he ordered more from the person working the stand.

After consuming several more pastries, Xehanort found that he was satisfied and ceased his wandering. He began to turn around and head back when suddenly he smelt an odor most foul.

'What is this,' he thought to himself.

The scent was akin was dark, foul, and smelled as though a corpse was rotting. He looked around, seeing that no one around him was reacting to it. After a few moments wondering just where that smell was coming from, a realization shaped as a hand smacked Xehanort in the head. Someone was calling for him using the power of darkness.

'It appears there is someone else here that besides me that practice the dark arts.' Intrigued by this sudden turn of events, Xehanort made the decision to follow the scent to its source, exiting the shopping district and entering the foreigner district in the process.

Arriving at a mansion where the scent originated from, Xehanort approached the door and knocked. After waiting a minute, Xehanort decided to just open the door anyway. He reached for the door and opened it to find the source of the darkness right in front of him.

"I am glad you answered my call, young one."

Xehanort blinked. An old man. A really old man. A really old man that was bald, horrendously pale, has odd eyes that were mostly black with white iris, and appears so fragile that he needs a cane to be able to walk. He wore a green hakama and wore a black robe over it similar to the outfit that Eraqus likes to frequently wear.

'This is the source of the darkness?' Xehanort thought.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Heheheh," the old man laughed. "I can tell you're curious, but please," he waved his hands backward, signaling Xehanort inside. "Let us talk elsewhere. The door is hardly a place to be talking."

The decrepit old man turned around and walked deep into the house. Xehanort, interested in finding out why he called for him, went further in after. After passing by room after room and going up the stairs and entered a room and Xehanort followed.

He looked to his left and saw a long four legged desk with a lamp on it and multiple clear windows behind it. To the right, he saw two sightly smaller version of desk with a large furniture holding multiple containers in between the two of them. When he looked forward, he saw the old man setting aside his cane and taking a seat upon a rather eloquent looking chair.

Xehanort was quick on the draw.

"Who are you?" he asked. "Why have you called me here?"

The old man smiled creepily.

"My name is Zouken Matou." The old man introduced himself. "Why have I called you here?" he asked rhetorically. "Let me tell you. I know that you are a Master in this current war."

Xehanort raised his eyebrows at that, curious as to how he knew. Zouken noticed this and responded in turn.

"Don't look so surprise. I got my eyes and ears everywhere in this city. Did you really think you can just stroll into town without anyone noticing?"

"That still doesn't tell me why you have called me."

"I'm getting to that, if you would let me finished." He said. "My son, Kariya, is one of the Masters of the Holy Grail War."

Xehanort wondered why this old man would freely give information such as that to him.

"He is the reason why I have called you here. You see, I like to ask you a favor."

"Would that favor happen to involve me letting him win the Holy Grail War?" Xehanort asked sarcastically.

To his surprise, the old man began to laugh and cackle.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! Kariya winning? Ha! That's a good one!" he continued to cackle like a demented old man for a bit before stopping to continue the conversation. "No, no, what I want is quite the opposite you see."

'What is he going on about?'

"I've never liked the little shit. But he was the only Matou in recent history that was capable of becoming a half decent mage. Yet he had the audacity to desert his duties, only to come crawling back to me. What I want is for you to make his remaining time in this war as humiliating and painful as possible," Zouken said with sadistic glee in his tone.

Xehanort held his hand up, making Zouken pause, before speaking. He had a myriad of questions to ask him.

"First off, why?" he asked. "Why sabotage him? Would it not be in your best interest to help him?"

"As I've said, I have a very strong dislike of him. The brat abandoned this family and forsaken any chance of becoming a proper mage all because he didn't like my particular brand of magecraft."

"And why kind is that?"

"That's a secret, boy." Zouken quickly said. "And besides, you can't sabotage what is already a failure."

Xehanort asked another question that was on his mind.

"Why can't you do it yourself?"

"Believe me, I've already done everything that I can." Zouken smiled coyly as he responded. "But I'm afraid that in my current condition, going outside to just further antagonize the brat is a little out of the question. That is why if you do accept my request, I'll give you information not only on Kariya, but on another participant as well."

'He must really want to see his own son suffer.'

He thought it over in his head. If he accepted, he'll have access to information on not one, but two Masters, making winning this war an even easier task to accomplish. On the other hand, this may be a trap or a lead up to it. However, he had a feeling that the old man was sincere in his hatred of his son and thus, the possibility of it being a trap became less likely.

After spending a few minutes thinking on it, he found there wasn't any real downsides to this arrangement. Still, the old man was hiding something from him. A lot of things. Yet as of now, in the interest of obtaining information, he'll turn a blind eye. At least, just for now.

"Very well, I accept your request."

"Excellent." Zouken smiled creepily.

* * *

The aged man kept his end of the deal and provided him extensive information on two masters. The first he mentioned was Kariya Matou, the master of Berserker, and the second was Tokiomi Tohsaka, the master of Archer.

Kariya Matou is identifiable by his pale decrepit appearance and white hair despite his relative youth. He wears a blue hoodie during the daytime as an attempt to conceal his condition from any onlookers.

When he had asked for information as to why Kariya himself chose to compete, Zouken went out the room and came back with a young purple haired girl by his side. He explained to Xehanort that the girl, who was named Sakura, was Kariya's motivation for winning the war. When he pressed for more information, the old man elaborated.

The girl was once a part of another family, the Tohsaka family to be exact. Kariya had a sort of relationship with the matriarch of the family, a woman named Aoi. As a result of this relationship, he got to know the two children that had spawned from her body, Rin and Sakura, who he had came to treat as though they were his own daughters.

This close bond lasted until the day the head of the family, Tokiomi Tohsaka, decided to give away the youngest of the two, Sakura, to Zouken. Rin was chosen to the successor to the Tohsaka brand of magic while Sakura was abandoned to the Matou's.

Kariya, who held his family's brand of magic in very low esteem, became devastated when he learned that Sakura was adopted by Zouken. Knowing that she would suffer a fate potentially worse than death, he offered himself up to the head of the Matou family in exchange for the freedom of the girl. When that failed, he offered to compete in the upcoming Holy Grail War and win the Holy Grail in return for the girl's release. This offer was taken but Zouken said he accepted only to see Kariya suffer throughout the war and that he "wouldn't know what to do if he'd actually succeeded."

When Zouken accepted the deal, he had Kariya undergo multiple 'tests' that had resulted in Kariya's once pathetic magical powers becoming much stronger in a short amount of time. The old man did not explain the method. However, as a result of this huge increase in power, Kariya's health is undergoing constant deterioration. His physique has eroded and some of his limbs are now paralyzed resulting in a constant limp. Having Berserker as a servant did not help in this regard as maintaining the mad servant existence while he is fighting drains a tremendous amount of energy driving Kariya ever closer to death.

After hearing all he needed to hear from Zouken about Kariya, Xehanort decided to change the subject of interest. He wanted to know more about this Tokiomi.

Tokiomi fancies himself as a cold hearted mage. As such, he is willing to ignore things such as happiness of both himself and his family in pursuit of his goal. Though he has love for both his wife and daughters, he focuses more on their lives as magi. This was a primary factor in his decision to give one of his daughters to the Matou family.

Zouken went into more detail as to why he did so.

According to Zouken, this was due to a tradition that consolidated power to a single heir rather than multiple heirs, due to the infighting that would most likely happen as a result of having multiple heirs. Not only that, a magus family protection could only be applied to the one receiving the training. As such, whoever did not become the successor would receive the short end of the stick, so to speak. As Zouken had previously explained to him before, Kariya leaving the family had left the Matou family without an heir to call their own, so this combined with that makes it easy to see why Tokiomi had left the young girl with the old man.

Tokiomi's motivation for winning the war is to reach a place called Akasha, also known as 'The Root.' Zouken explained what the root is. The Root is a metaphysical location within the universe which is the source of all events and phenomena. As it exists outside of time, it stores and archives all information, all possibilities, all events of the past, present, and future.

After hearing enough from Zouken about the two masters, Xehanort quickly summarized the information he received in his head.

Kariya's motivation for winning the war is the release of Sakura from Zouken's possession. If Zouken would allow it, then in case he needed to, he could use the girl against Kariya and prevent him from attacking him and perhaps even use him. Though he could see that the plan could potentially backfire on him. Given from what Zouken had said about him, his mental state is most likely not at its peak, to say the least.

Tokiomi is more concerned with reaching the root. As thus, he is not as likely to react the same way as Kariya if presented with the same scenario. However, he is also concerned with his families lives as Magi. That is to say, he would be more likely to react if the entire future of the Tohsaka lineage were at stake. So if he were to kidnap his wife and his daughters, and make him doubt his own chances of surviving the War, he would be more shaken up as a result. And a man shaken is a man not operating at one hundred percent.

Yes, Yes. He's got something now. With Archer and Berserker as they currently are, he can't win in a straight up fight. But he can settle for the next best thing. He can just make them waste their command seals.

He began smiling in anticipation and the old man took notice of this.

"Oh? You got something, do you?" he asked somewhat excitedly.

"Yes, I do," Xehanort responded. "But first and foremost, I am going to need two things from you."

* * *

**FATE/NO HEART**

* * *

**Yooo, this is Kanimize here. First things first, Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the first sin is one hell of a drug. Once I had a sample, I could not stay away from the stuff. Secondly, I hope you're enjoying the story thus far. Lastly, if you've already following or favorited the story, be sure to review. If not, then do that and then review. **_  
_

**Edit 1: I can't write Saber for shit.**


	8. Preparations and Sub-Plots

Fate/No Heart

Disclaimer: I definitely do not own Kingdom Hearts or Fate/Zero.

**Making Xehanort do evil things to accomplish his goals is pretty entertaining. What do you guys think? Yay or nay? Well, in any case, no matter what he does, it's bound to be interesting.  
**

Chapter 7: A cold heart.

* * *

Caster was busy working on her latest work, a grand illusion of the battle that had taken the life of her sister and her daughter, when suddenly she heard a portal of darkness manifest itself from behind her. When she turned around, she saw her black hooded master, name currently unknown to her, walking out of the portal with three very interesting things. One in each arm and other trailing him from behind.

The one in his right arm was an unconscious black haired woman of considerable beauty. The one he is carrying with his left arm is a small black haired girl, also unconscious, with twin tails. The two of them must be mother and daughter. Trailing behind her master was another young girl. She was a purple haired child with eyes and an outfit that matches her hair.

"Master," she said. "Who are these people?" The strange sight caused her curiosity to well up. After all, it wasn't everyday a person just up and go kidnap three people. Particularly someone like her master.

"Just the daughters and wife of one of the other participant." He said in a nonchalant manner.

This...might be bad.

"Hold on," she said. For clarity sake, she needed information. "When did you do this, why, and which one?"

"In the order that you asked," Xehanort began to answer her questions. "Just five minutes ago, cause I got a plan, and they belong to Tokiomi Tohsaka, the master of Archer."

What.

"Wait, wait, wait," Caster was stunned at her master words. More specifically, the last part. "What?!"

"And the child behind me," he motioned to the girl behind him, "While of the Tohsaka blood, she is also the reason why the Berserker's master is participating in the war."

WHAT?!

The next words just flew out of her mouth.

"ARE YOU INSANE?!" she screamed.

"Not insane, Caster," he said smoothly, disregarding the rude tone that she was using. "Confident." Despite the hood that covered his face, Caster could tell that the man was smiling smugly at her. Still, hopefully she could talk some sense into him.

"By kidnapping those three..." she started. "You've attracted the attention of both Archer and Berserker, the two biggest threat in this war."

"Caster, I am well aware of that."

"Then why?!" She questioned.

"Didn't you listen, Caster?" he took on a chastising tone with her. "I've got a plan."

She was practically fuming at this point.

"And...what would this plan be, exactly?!" she said in a low tone.

Instead of answering immediately, he dropped the two females onto the grass and directed the girl behind him to stay. He quickly summoned a portal of darkness and began walking backwards into it.

"I'll tell you later," Her master said. "Keep those two unconscious for me, okay?"

"Wait!" She attempted to stop him but the portal quickly dissipated, leaving her with three females.

...She could feel a migraine coming on.

* * *

**FATE/NO HEART**

* * *

**NIGHT**

Tokiomi could not believe the situation he was currently in. Earlier today, he had heard someone knock the door without him knowing, a feat that should've been impossible thanks to his bounded field. When he came to investigate, he opened the door to find no one there. Instead, he had found only a letter. The contents of which has caused him to become immensely worried.

He took the letter from the floor of the entrance, proceeded to his study, and opened it up. Sitting in his chair at his desk, he began to read the content. It read:

**_I have kidnapped your wife and daughter. If you wish to see them again, come to woods located in the south. You may bring your Servant.  
A word of warning-  
If any actions of suspect were to occur, your family, and the future of the Tohsaka Clan, will be devoured by darkness.  
_**

The letter ended there with no clue as to who wrote it.

'This is not good,' Tokiomi thought. 'Not good at all.' He did not like this one bit. Whoever the kidnappers are, they are ignoring one of the many rules of the war.

Do not involve non-participants.

He began to ponder on whether or not to get help from the Kotomine's, both senior and junior. But he was concerned with the content of the message, particularly concerning the last bit.

"Is something the matter, Tokiomi?" He heard his Servant, Gilgamesh, spoke. He looked up just in time to see his golden clad servant shift from spirit form to a more tangible form right in front of him.

'Oh, great. He's here.' He didn't like working with Gilgamesh. As the oldest hero from the tales of yore, he is indeed the most strongest servant that could have ever possibly been summoned in the history of the Holy Grail Wars and the greatest chance of the Tohsaka family finally obtaining the Holy Grail. Yet, despite this, he did not like the servant. Not one bit.

If he had to be perfectly honest with himself, it was because he had found the servant to be completely insufferable. He is extremely arrogant, selfish, quick to anger, and severely lacking in discipline. It was these traits that had manifested in the battle at the warehouse district that forced him to use a command seal to prevent Gilgamesh from revealing the true extent of his capabilities so soon.

Of course, he couldn't say that out loud. Or even imply it. As Gilgamesh was of the Archer class, he had a very high rank in Independent Action, an ability that can allow him to function without a master for a relatively long time. If the golden servant ever heard his true thoughts, it would be very likely that the servant would just slay him and find an alternative master, one more respectful of him.

It is for this reason that he bit his tongue and kept his true thoughts to himself and hid himself behind a mask of a well disciplined yet completely boring man to protect himself. However, should things go according to plan, then he would be extremely pleased to see Gilgamesh curse him as he order the arrogant servant to kill himself with the command seals on his hand.

"Are you ignoring me, Tokiomi?" Gilgamesh raised his voice, clearly not liking the lack of immediate response from his Master.

"I apologize, King of Heroes," he said while keeping his head down, lest he accidentally provoke Gilgamesh. "I was distracted by something."

"Oh? Something that distracted you? What was it that distracted you to the point where you couldn't greet me, the King of all Heroes, properly?" Gilgamesh said with a hint of curiosity and arrogance that he loathe evident in his voice.

Seeing as this will involve him as well, he decided to tell him.

"I'd hate to inconvenience you, Gilgamesh, but it appears that my family has been kidnapped." He said this while maintaining a passive look. Hopefully, he wouldn't see through it.

"Interesting..." the servant said. "You may continue."

"Whoever the kidnappers are, it is evident that they are participants. They've requested both of our presence in the forest located in the south. If we go there, we are likely to find the Master and Servant that are-"

"Tell me what you are feeling." Gilgamesh suddenly said.

"Excuse me?" He asked in confusion.

"Your emotions, Tokiomi. Don't tell me you've never felt them."

He feels as though this conversation had just taken a weird turn.

"You wish to know how I feel about this situation?" He didn't look up, but he had a feeling that the servant was smiling.

"Of course. Surely you must feel something regarding this situation you've found yourself in. Or do you mean to tell me that the man who summoned me for the Holy Grail War truly doesn't feel for anything at all?"

Yes. He did feel something. It was an intense feeling, a burning hatred for the master that not only defiled one of the conventions of the Holy Grail War but also kidnapped his family. However, he didn't want to say it out loud. He could tell that Gilgamesh was attempting to goad him into revealing his true, undignified, emotions.

"Lord Gilgamesh," he attempted to use reason. "We are currently at war with others, I do not think my feelings matter at this moment."

Through their connection with each other, he could sense Gilgamesh's displeasure with this answer. Yet he also felt something else. The servant was feeling something positive. Was...was that amusement he felt?

"Tokiomi," he said. "From the moment you've summoned me, you've been nothing but a bore. Always prim, always proper, and never revealing any emotion. Up until this point, you have shown me nothing interesting about yourself. Now that your family has been kidnapped, cracks in your facade have begun to show and as such, you've begun denying me. Normally this would entail a punishment, but what I see before me is quite interesting."

"What are you-" he was interrupted by Gilgamesh.

"Your emotions are breaking through, Tokiomi. And through our connection, I can feel it. You care for your family a great deal and you hate the person that is using them to get to you."

"That...is not true, Lord Gilgamesh." he quickly tried to deny.

"Ah...even now you try to deny your true emotions." Gilgamesh let out a small chuckle. "Still, for amusing me so much today, not only will you be spared from punishment, I will also come with you to the southern forest. Ah. Before I forget. Take heed, human. This mercy shall only be given once. Next time, when I ask a question, I expect an immediate response."

"..You are too kind, Lord Gilgamesh."

The servant disappeared from view and left the study, leaving only a mentally exhausted Tokiomi slumped in the chair, releasing a breath that he didn't even know he was holding.

'This is not good.'

* * *

Kariya Matou came as quickly as he received the message. He quickly made his way inside the mansion and what he saw horrified him. The place was a complete disaster. Doors were broken, windows were shattered, all the rooms are in complete disarray, and worst of all, he couldn't find Sakura anywhere!

"Is that you, Kariya?" He heard an unpleasant voice say.

"Zouken." Kariya said with a venomous tone in his voice. "I was hoping that you've perished by the time I got here, or at least severely injured." He turned around and faced the man who made not only his life a hell, but also Sakura's as well.

"Why, Kariya. Once again, I'm disappointed in you," the bald man started. "You should know better than to take that tone with me."

"Cut the crap, you old vampire!" Kariya interrupted the head of the Matou family. "Where's Sakura?!" He desperately needed to know. She was his reason to fight in this war in the first place. If she was gone, then what was the point of both of them suffering?

"You mean the girl?" The old man began to laugh loudly before quickly settling down. "Hehe. Last I saw of her, I handed her off to one of the masters of the Grail War that attacked this place." He had a tone of smugness in his voice as he said that.

"You what?!" Kariya shouted.

"You heard what I said. Or has your hearing gone as well?"

"You bastard!" In a fit of rage, he rushed at Zouken, intending to punch him for giving her away. Normally he wouldn't dare do such a thing, but he wasn't of sound mind and body at the moment. However, It was also this reason that allowed Zouken to counter Kariya so easily. Zouken lifted his cane with his right hand and thrust it at Kariya's chest. Kariya, with his weak body and ailing mind, couldn't react fast enough to dodge it.

"Argh!" The bottom of the cane hit him square in the chest, forcing the sickly man onto the ground on his back. The blow knocked the air right out of his lungs, leaving Kariya gasping for breath as he attempts to cope with the pain.

"Now, now, Kariya." The old bald man chastised the younger Matou. "I'm only trying to help you, you know."

"You c-call this helping?" Kariya questioned while grunting in pain. "How the hell does this help me or her?!"

"Silence, you ungrateful brat." The old man approached Kariya, who was still on the ground, and began pressing down his cane on the parts of the younger Matou's body, the parts that can still feel.

Kariya began screaming in agony. He wanted to call on Berserker right then and now, but in the back of his head, he knew that if he were to do so, it would be all for naught. The old man would just come back despite being seemingly killed and kill both him and Sakura easily with the worms that he implanted in both of their bodies. So for now, He suffered.

After five minutes of listening to him scream, Zouken stopped. To Kariya, however, it felt more like an eternity. After waiting five minutes for him to recover from his punishment, Zouken began to talk once again.

"Hopefully, that will teach you not to talk back." Zouken said. "Now...where was I?" he questioned himself before remembering where the conversation left off. "Ah, that's right. The girl."

The old man began to explain.

"As you know, child, the worms that infests both you and your precious little girl are created from my special brand of magecraft. What you did not know is that the worms that infest your bodies not only empowers both of you, it also allows their true master to track their host's every movement."

"W-what?"

"Think, boy. By allowing the master and servant to take the girl, I now know one of the opposing masters location."

This sounds too good to be true, especially since it's coming from that old man's mouth.

"W-what's the catch?" He questioned. "You don't usually give information unless you've the recipient do something for you."

"And usually, that is the case." the old man said without skipping a beat. "However, as this is a special occasion, I've elected to give you this information for free." He then saw Zouken take something strange out of his pockets before looking up and seeing a sadistic glee in his eyes. "Hell, I'll even give you a parting gift."

He didn't like the sound of that.

* * *

After leaving a message at the mansion where Tohsaka resides, Xehanort reappeared at the southern forest to find Caster waiting for him. Using magic, she had restrained the lady and her child to a tree. The other child, Sakura Matou, was not subjected to the same treatment as her will had already been broken by Zouken long ago.

And fortunately, Caster had properly obeyed him and kept the mother and daughter of the Tohsaka clan unconscious.

"Now that you're back, Master," He heard Caster say. He looked and saw that she was impatiently tapping her foot on the ground. "Would you mind telling me what you are planning to do?" There was a tone of annoyance in her voice. It was probably due to the fact that he was keeping her out of the loop of his current scheme.

He was slightly amused by this.

"Very well," he said. "I did promise, did I not?" He gestured towards the females by the tree. "You are probably wondering why I have kidnapped them in the first place, correct?"

"The thought has crossed my mind, yes." She responded. "I assume you want to use them against both the Masters of Archer and Berserker somehow, correct?"

"Oh?" He took notice of her change in disposition. "You seem less agitated. Normally, you would've gone on a rant, saying that whatever I was planning on doing would be complete insanity."

"To be honest," she began to explain. "So long as this does not interfere with my own plan to defeat Saber, I do not care much at all. And besides, you've already proven yourself to be competent. So despite the incredible risk you've brought by kidnapping those three, I believe that you already have a course of action plot out."

He chuckled a little, though he made sure not to let it out.

"Yes, yes. I do." He made a slight pause before properly explaining exactly who the three are. "Now, let me continue. Those two, confined to the tree, are part of the Tohsaka clan. The woman is of little note, save for her importance to the man she married. The little girl, however, is important as she is heir to the magic practiced by her father. As such, she will make good bait."

"Uh huh. Now who is the creepy little girl?" she asked.

"The purple haired girl is another one child that Tokiomi fathered." He turned ever so slightly in the direction of the girl and raised his voice just enough so that she can hear. "However, she was abandoned." He then lowered his voice back down. "She was left in the company of the Matou, which Kariya, the Master of Berserker, is apart of. It was there that the child was tortured ruthlessly by the head of its family. The exact details is unknown, but I was told that it gave the girl quite a boost in her magical capabilities. Nonetheless, that girl is the reason why the Master of Berserker fights."

"I see...so you intend to bait out them both out..." she thought on this a little more. "Ah...I see...you intend for them to fight each other."

He nodded. Caster continued.

"By using the those three as hostages, you intend to force them into a battle where only the one who wins survives. How clever of you to think of something like that. But tell me this: what if something goes wrong?" she asked.

Xehanort smirked confidently and responded in turn.

"Do not worry, Caster. I'm prepared for anything."

* * *

**FATE/NO HEART**

* * *

**Yooo, this is Kanimize (again). **

**Again, I gotta say, making Xehanort do evil things is pretty fucking fun. **

**You know the drill: Favorite, Follow, or Review. Or not.**

**...That's pretty much all I have to say.**


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